I Will Never Leave You Lonely
by horseandbooklover
Summary: She's a 7th grade English teacher. He's a pro football player. What will happen when their worlds collide? Revised edition.
1. Meeting Emmett

Chapter 1

Bella's POV

I searched frantically for him. How did he manage to get away from me? I just turned to look at a book that caught my eye for a second. Just a second. But a second was all it took for some creep to take my baby for me. All my worst fears came bubbling to the surface. What if somebody had taken him? What if I never saw him again? I looked through all the isles of the bookstore to no avail.

My breathing became more and more labored and tears started to well up in my eyes. I was just about to ask one of the male employees to check in the men's restroom for me when I saw my baby boy.

I had almost walked past him, almost missed him. But that was his jacket peeking out from the side of the bookshelf. It had to be. I ran towards him, ignoring the funny looks that people were giving me. I had to get to my baby boy, make sure that he was safe and unharmed.

"Logan! Oh thank God." I looked to see that he was sitting in a chair, reading a book with a complete and total stranger. My Logan looked up when he heard me call his name and a wide smile appeared on his face as he dropped the book that he was reading and he came scampering over to me. I enfolded Logan in my arms, breathing a sigh of relief that I hadn't lost the one thing that kept me waking up every morning. Sensing my worry, Logan smiled up at me, hoping to ease my worries; he had always been a little more in tune with how I was feeling, even as a baby.

I could remember a couple of days after I'd taken him home when I started to worry that his father would come and try to take him from me as I was watching him sleep. I started to get flustered, and I couldn't help the tears that slid down my cheeks at the thought of my baby being taken away from me. Logan woke up shortly after I started choking out sobs. I walked over to him and picked up my bundle of joy, sitting in the old wooden rocking chair that Renee had rocked me in. Logan stared at me for a couple of minutes and then he started making funny faces and I couldn't help but smile and laugh with him. And he'd done the same thing ever since.

I ignored the man that Logan had been reading to, my eyes roaming over my son's form, making sure that no harm had come to him, but I could feel the stranger's eyes on me and it made me pull Logan closer to me again, hoping that he would just accept my apology and leave us alone.

"I'm sorry if he was bugging you sir," I said as I held Logan's hand, as we made our way to retrieve his jacket, walking so that my body was in front his. I held it out for him as he maneuvered his arms into the sleeves.

"He was no trouble at all. He's a great reader." The deep tones surprised me and I looked up at the man and my eyes widened and my breath caught in my throat.

He had short, dark brown hair with the beginnings of sideburns. Light blue eyes that were full of life and laughter continued to look upon me and my son with interest. His jaw was strong, and his lips pulled up in what was the making of what was sure to be a breathtaking smile. His broad shoulders filled out a light blue and white striped shirt magnificently and I couldn't help but notice how ripped he was. His biceps bulged and he wasn't even flexing them. Even sitting down, I could tell he was tall, at least 6' 5''. And I was almost positive that he was all muscle.

He could've subdued both my son and I in a matter of seconds, and that frightened me. But then I realized that he was doing everything in his power to seem as little as possible, having also sensed my stress levels.

I cleared my throat and blood rushed to my face; I couldn't believe that I had just openly gawked at this man. "Yeah, he loves to read." I said softly, still slightly baffled by the man, there was no doubt in my mind that he was the finest male specimen that I had ever seen. "I'm sorry again but we should be going." I said looking at Logan, trying to center myself again after my adrenaline rush.

"Ok Mommy," he said softly, looking back at the man and offering him a small smile. I held Logan's hand and started to walk away as quickly as possible without actually running away, when I was stopped once again.

"Wait, I didn't get your name!" The man was now standing and my suspicions about his height were answered. He was intimidating when sitting down, but now he just scared the shit out of me. What to do? I could just keep walking and pretend that I hadn't heard him, but I had already stopped.

"Bella," I decided telling him that much, hoping that it would be enough to satisfy him.

"Will I ever see you again Bella?" he questioned, talking a couple of steps closer to us. I bit my lip nervously and held onto my son's hand tighter.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea," I admitted slowly, hoping that he would understand. Logan was my main priority and I wouldn't do anything that could end up in him getting hurt.

"Do you have a husband or boyfriend?" The man questioned. I frowned, what business was it of his if I had a significant other?

"I don't see how that's any of your business." I replied curtly, hoping that he would just drop this and I could get my son home for his lunch and then nap. The giant smiled knowingly.

"If we see each other in the near future will you give me a chance? Or at least a last name?" I raised an eyebrow. Forks, Washington was a small town, there was no doubt about that. But the chances of me seeing this man were very slim. Hoping that it would get him to leave us alone I nodded my head. "Perfect." He replied, smiling. "I'll be counting the minutes Ms. Bella." His eyes moved down to my son and I couldn't help but pull my baby in closer to me. "See ya later Logan." I was surprised that Logan had talked to the man in the first place, normally he was really shy and introverted, and so talking to strangers had never been a problem before. But Logan had had no issues with being open to this man and that worried me.

"Bye, bye Emmett." And he offered a tiny wave which the man returned with interest. I scurried out of the store, looking back every so often to see if the man was following us. But he wasn't, he just stood where we left him, watching us leave.

When we got to my truck, the same one my dad had gotten me as my homecoming gift when I first started living with him, I helped Logan get buckled into his seat. "Logan, you know that you're not supposed to talk to strangers right?" He nodded his head once, looking down at his small hands. "Baby, I need you to promise me that you won't something like that ever again okay? Mommy was scared." I placed my hands over his to stop his fidgeting and hopefully get him to look up at me.

"Sowy." He whispered. "He was nice dough. He wouldn' have hurt me." I could hear the conviction in his voice and I hoped that he was right this time.

"Okay baby. But I still want you to promise me okay? Because not every stranger is like that man. And I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Sowy Mommy. I won't do dat 'gen." I let out the breath that I had unconsciously been holding in and kissed Logan's head.

"I love you baby, always remember that. Okay?"

"I know Mommy. I love you too." Smiling, I ruffled his hair before closing his door and getting in myself.

The trip back home was quiet, after playing at the park with his Uncle Jake for close to three hours prior to going to the bookstore, Logan was tuckered out. I smiled as I watched him fight to keep his heavy lids from closing as he looked out of the window. I knew that he would fall asleep before we got home. There was road construction preventing me from taking my usual, shorter route home, but with the detour, it would take us at least twenty-five more minutes before we got home.

My thoughts inevitably went back to the man Logan had been reading with, and I couldn't help the one last shiver that swam through my body at the thought of him getting taken away from me. My worst fear. As much as I hated to admit it, the man didn't look like he wanted to hurt Logan or me, and there was a small part of my brain that wished I would see him again, but that was stupid thinking. I rolled my eyes at myself and looked in the mirror once more to find that, sure enough, Logan had conked out, his head resting against the window, snoring lightly.

My brow furrowed when I noticed that there was a car pulled over onto the shoulder on the opposite side of the road. The driver was sitting in the driver's seat, rummaging through the glove box. I pulled over as well, getting out and checking to make sure that Logan was still sleeping before I checked for any oncoming cars and crossed the street.

"Sir, do you need any help?" The man froze and when he turned around, my heart stopped.

The man from the bookstore. The one Logan had been reading with. Only now he was wearing a light jacket and a beanie hat that had made him unrecognizable from behind.

"Hello Miss Bella." He was wearing a big grin on his face as he closed the glove box and stepped out of the car. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, turning to look back at my truck with Logan still sleeping soundly. I turned back to the man to find him still staring at me.

"Are you going to tell me your last name now?"

"You haven't told me your name." I pointed out, trying to get his attention off of me.

"Sorry," he said, grinning sheepishly now. "Emmett Cullen at your service." I narrowed my eyes at this strange man, wondering what his fascination with me was.

"I've got some cables in my truck. Do you want to see if we can jump start your car?"

"Sounds good to me Miss Bella." I left abruptly before he could ask me about my last name again, walking to my truck and driving to the other side of the road, making sure that Logan was still asleep before I climbed back out and popped the hood, cables in hand.

Emmett held out his hand for the cables, but I ignored him and attached the cables to the battery posts before handing Emmett his cables so that he could do the same. He looked at me for a moment, surprise etched on his face, before he took the cables that I offered him.

"How'd you know what to attach them to?" He questioned, as he clipped on the clamps. I debated on not answering him, but he turned and looked at me expectantly.

"My Dad's the Chief of Police and my best friend's a mechanic. Both of them are really overprotective and so they made sure that I know how to change a tire, jump a car, and carry a can of pepper spray with me at all times." I explained, making my way to the driver's seat to go start my truck.

"But they let you drive this hunk of metal? Shouldn't they be more worried about getting you a safer car for you and your son?" I narrowed my eyes at him and stalked over the big brute of a man.

"I don't see how it's any of your business Mr. Cullen. And I'll ask you not to question my choice of transportation." I was pleased that he had the decency to look ashamed.

"I apologize Miss Bella. I wasn't in the right."

"Just don't do it again," I stated, and moved back to my truck, starting my truck. I looked over at Logan who was still fast asleep, a little drool forming in the corner of his mouth. I smiled at him and moved a curl that had fallen onto his forehead.

I got out and looked to find Emmett off to the side of the road, his hands shoved in his pockets and his shoulders hunched as he paced back and forth. With my arms crossed over my chest, I made my way over to him. As I approached, he looked up at the sound of the gravel crunching under my shoes. On the downward slope to where Emmett was standing, I tripped over some invisible object and fell onto my ass.

Emmett rushed over to me and knelt by my side, checking me over for any blood. "Are you okay?" He questioned hastily, running his hands over my back.

"I'm fine Emmett." I told him, grabbing onto his hands to pause their search. His brow was furrowed and his eyes disbelieving. "Really, I'm fine. I fall all of the time; I'm kind of a klutz."

"You're sure you're okay?" I nodded my head resolutely. Emmett looked me over once more and then held out his hand to help me up. I took it appreciatively and whipped the dirt and rubble from my butt with my free hand.

"Can I have my hand back?" Emmett's massive hand still encased my own and I was surprised that it felt… nice.

"Oh! Yeah, sorry." He dropped my hand like it was a hot potato that he'd been holding for far too long. "Um, I just wanted to apologize again for what I said earlier. I didn't mean to offend you… Sometimes I just don't think before I say stuff." I shrugged and slowly started making my way back up the hill to the cars, Emmett by my side.

"We're humans. Humans make mistakes all the time, it's in our make-up. Nobody's perfect." When we got to the cars again, I turned off my car and suggested that he go and try to start his.

The car started, but it didn't run. I ran my car again and we tried once more but once again, his car didn't start. There weren't any conversations that were had while we waited, but the silence was comfortable.

After the third time we tried, I was starting to get increasingly frustrated.

"Maybe I should call my friend, he's a mechanic and he can check your car out. Plus it's getting late and I really should be getting Logan home, I'm surprised that he's slept this long. But if he sleeps any longer, he won't go to bed tonight." He nodded in understanding and agreed that I should probably call Jake.

Grabbing my phone out of my purse, I dialed the number that I had long ago memorized and waited for Jake to answer.

"Black Mechanics. This is Quil speaking, how can I help you?"

"Hey Quil, its Bella. Is Jake there?"

"Bella! How things are on your side of the world?" I could practically see the smile on his face. And I couldn't help but smile at his craziness.

"Things are pretty good. Is Jake there?" I repeated, not wanting to get caught up in a conversation with him at the moment.

"Oh, yeah. Just a sec." The voices became muffled as Quil held the phone away from his face. "Jackey boy! Bellsy Boo is on the phone and for some reason she wants to talk to your ugly ass!" I tried to stifle a giggle but it came out as a snort, much to my embarrassment. I heard Jake yell at Quil and what sounded like a scramble for the phone. I rolled my eyes at their antics.

"Hey Bella. What's up?"

"I have a favor to ask you. If you're not too busy of course." I said, not wanting to bother him at work if he was backed up.

"I'm never too busy for you Bells. What's up?"

"My friend's car won't start and I was wondering if you could come and take a look at it. We've tried jumping it three times and it still won't run."

"Yeah, I can come out. Where are you?" I relayed our location and then hung up the phone after he said that he should be here in about thirty minutes. I thanked him profusely before I hung up and walked back over to Emmett who was leaning against the hood of his car, his hands hidden in his pockets again.

"Jake's coming out. He said he'd be here in about thirty minutes or so." Placing my phone back in my pocket, I went to stand next to Emmett, crossing my arms over my chest and rubbing my arms with my hands, hoping the friction would warm them up.

"You cold?" Emmett questioned, noticing my action right away. I nodded my head slightly. "Why don't you go sit in your truck until your friend gets here. You'll be warmer."

I shook my head resolutely, "I can't just leave you out here by yourself." Emmett rolled his eyes and started shouldering off his jacket. I shook my head and raised my arms in protest. "I can't take your jacket. I'm fine. Really." Emmett shook his head and continued to take off his jacket.

"You're cold and you won't go warm up in your car. You're taking the jacket. I don't get cold that much anyways. I just have it because my Mom always told me never to leave without a coat. _'You can always take layers off,'_ she'd always say." He held out the jacket for me to put on and I gradually slipped my arms into the oversized sleeves. Emmett stepped in front of me and zipped the jacket up as far as it would go before pulling the hood up over my head, pushing the hair that had fallen loose from my ponytail out of my face, his fingers lingering on my cheek. Blood rushed into my cheeks and I turned my head to the side, displacing his fingers from my face. His hand dropped to his side despondently and he moved back to my side, crossing his arms over his chest again. I couldn't help but take a quick intake of breath at the scent of something so purely Emmett surrounding me. It was welcoming, calming, and… Emmett.

"Warmer?" He questioned after a moment of silence, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I nodded, "much thank you." I looked straight at the still sleeping Logan, I was worried that he wouldn't sleep tonight, but I didn't want to wake him quite yet, afraid that he would be jittery and want to play and I didn't want him running around the street or too close to the forest, so I let him sleep some more.

"Does he talk to strangers often?" Emmett questioned out of the blue, seeing where my gaze was directed.

I shook my head resolutely, "This is the first time he's done it. And I'm worried that it'll become a habit. Normally he's really quiet and reserved, only talking to family and friends. I have no idea what made him go up to you."

Emmett shrugged his shoulders. "I like kids, maybe he sensed that. They have really great intuition." I nodded my head robotically, pictures flying through my mind of Logan getting taken from me and me never seeing him again. "I wouldn't ever hurt him. Or you. Or any other kid for that matter. I think that shit is sick." I nodded my head, starting to understand that he really didn't mean any harm.

"I'm starting to realize that. But you have to understand, I'm a mother. I don't know what I'd do if I lost my baby. He means the world to me." Emmett nodded his head.

"I know. I mean, I don't know _know_ because, well I'm not a woman, and I'm definitely not a mom. But I understand what you mean. My Mom's always been really protective over my sister and me. My Dad too, but my Mom more so. The maternal instinct I guess." I nodded my head mutely in agreement. "He seems like a good kid though."

"Yeah," I murmured quietly. "He's a very good kid. I love him so much. I don't know what I'd do without him."

Emmett nodded his head in understanding and turned around at the sound of an engine coming up the road. I too turned to look up the road and smiled when I saw the Black Mechanics tow truck coming upon us.

Jake pulled over once he spotted us and I headed over to him, going into his open arms, embracing him warmly.

"Bells," he laughed. "You just saw me this morning." I blushed and squeezed him tighter once more before I stepped back. Jake laughed at my blush and slung his arm around my shoulder, walking me back over to where Emmett was standing. "Where's the little big man?" He questioned as we meandered over. "Sleeping in the car," I responded, "you wore him out today at the park." He just smiled at me, "what can say? I play a mean game of Hot Lava Monster." I rolled my eyes and looked at Emmett again. I bit my lip as I saw the change in his stance, no longer was he leaning casually against his car hood with his hands in his pockets. Now he stood proudly at his full intimidating height of 6' 4'' with his arms crossed over his chest, his muscles bulging against the confines of his t-shirt.

I swallowed anxiously at the complete change in Emmett and wondered what had trigged this completely different personality to come out into the open. I stood awkwardly at Jake's side, wondering where to begin.

Introductions were probably a good start.

"Emmett, this is my friend Jacob Black. Jake, this is Emmett Cullen." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jake's eyes widen in surprise and his body stiffen slightly, I ignored him, deciding that it must have just been some male macho thing going on. Emmett held out his hand which Jake grabbed, plastering a fake smile on his face as both men tried to squeeze the living shit out the others hand. This went on for five agonizingly long minutes. I rolled my eyes at their childish antics, wondering what on earth they were trying to prove to each other.

After the first five minutes of their contest, I was starting to get fed up with it real fast. So to get Jake's attention, I elbowed him in the ribs. Hard. He automatically dropped Emmett's hand and his arm went to his torso, massaging the place where my elbow had made contact with him.

"What was that for Bells?" He demanded. I shrugged and put my innocent look on. "I don't know what you're talking about Jake." He glowered at me and moved to Emmett's car, messing around with things unknown to me under the hood. For the first couple of minutes, Emmett stood next to him, but then he made his way over by me where I was standing, by the driver's side door, casually looking on.

"You warm enough?" Emmett questioned.

"Yeah, do you want your jacket back now?" Emmett shook his head. "You hold onto it. I'm good." We watched Jake work in silence, as the sky started to darken around us. When Jake finished his inspection twenty minutes later, walking towards us, wiping his hand on a dirty rag that he always carried with him whenever he was working.

"So what's the news?" I anxiously.

"I can't tell for sure, but from that quick look, I'd bet that one of the battery's cells is dead so I'm going to have to tow it back to the shop." I sighed, wondering what Emmett was going to do.

"How long do you think it'll take?" Jake shrugged. "It all depends on if I'm right or not. It's almost closing time and I can't ask the guys to stay any longer than they already have. Maybe by lunch-time tomorrow."

"Is there a chance that you'd be able to get it done tonight?" I questioned hopefully. "I'll try, but I can't promise you anything. I have to get back to help my Dad go to the store tonight. Rachel's coming for a visit." I nodded understandingly. Billy Black, Jake's dad had been in a wheelchair for the past ten years, and he counted on Jake a lot.

I turned to Emmett, biting my lip, wondering if the idea that had been swimming trough my thoughts for a couple of minutes now, was such a great idea. "If you want, you can come back to my place and have some dinner while you wait. I've got some beef stew and bread."

"That'd be nice. If you don't mind that is."

"Let me just go make some room in my truck." I walked over to the driver's side and bit my lip, wondering how this was going to work. Logan still had a car seat and although the truck had a bench seat, it would be a tight squeeze to fit all of us in. I got to work on moving some of my bags back to the bed of the truck, turning to see Emmett and Jake talking in hushed tones over by Jake's tow truck. Not paying them any more attention, I got in my truck and moved it back over to my side of the road so that I wouldn't be in Jake's way.

Making my way over to them after parking once more and brushing a kiss over Logan's forehead, I shoved my hands in the oversized pockets of Emmett's jacket, second guessing myself on if I was really ok with letting this relative stranger in my house. Emmett seemed like a very nice man, and I did like talking with him, but… _No. Stop Bella. You've already invited him over, it would be rude to revoke that invitation now. He won't hurt you._ I nodded my head decisively, knowing that everything would turn out okay.

When they noticed me approaching, they both shut up abruptly. I raised an eyebrow questioningly but neither offered a response to their strange behavior, so I let it go. For now.

"Will you need any help getting the car up?" Emmett questioned. Jake shook his head resolutely.

"Alright, call me when you get back to the shop ok?" I said to Jake who nodded and held out his arms to me. Once again, I was enfolded in his embrace as he hugged me close to him and kissed the top of my head.

When he let me go, I looked to Emmett who looked slightly uncomfortable. "Ready?" I questioned. He nodded his head and smiled at me. I think my heart stopped. This smile wasn't like the others he had given me in the short time that we had known each other. This one was different. More special. More personal. More… him. It showed off both of his dimples on either side of his face, made his eyes sparkle merrily, and transformed his entire face.

I smiled back hesitantly and waved once more to Jake before Emmett and I walked to the truck. "You'll have to sit in the middle. Logan isn't exactly a waking up person, especially in a car." Emmett shrugged. "Doesn't matter to me, I'm just glad that I have a ride. I really appreciate it Bella." Emmett climbed awkward into the middle seat, trying to maneuver his body so that he could get in without making too much noise so as not to wake Logan up.

I got in after him and started the car, waving once more to Jake before I pulled out onto the street and started back home. Emmett kept the conversation flowing nicely, asking me how long I had been living in Forks for, if I like it here, and such. My answers were vague, but not rudely so, and he accepted them, telling me a little bit more about himself in return.

He had one older sister named Rosalie who, even though he knew perfectly well that she could take care of herself and was reminded of that quite often, he felt the need to protect. His father was a doctor in Chicago, where he was born and raised, and his mother was a philanthropist for numerous charities. Emmett told me that he was a die-hard Momma's boy and he had no idea what he would do without his mom.

I smiled at the love that emitted from Emmett as he talked about his family. It sounded like they all had fun together. From the Game Nights every Thursday, Movie Nights every Friday, and Sunday Brunches.

A _complete_ family.

I sighed wistfully. That's what I wanted for Logan. I wanted him to know what it was like to have a mom _and_ a dad supporting him for the rest of his life. I wanted to find someone who accepted and loved me for who I am, faults and all. And who accepted and loved Logan like his own. But guys tended to get freaked out when they found out that the woman they were dating was a single mom.

"Bella. Bella? Are you ok?" Emmett questioned. I blinked out of my stupor and looked at him for a moment before turning my gaze back to the road again.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. I must've zoned out." I shook my head to clear the fog, realizing that we were only a block from my house. I could still feel Emmett's concerned gaze on me, but I forced myself not to turn to look at him again, concentrating on the road in front of me.

I pulled into the driveway and got out, leaving the door open for Emmett who followed me out. I grabbed my bags out of the bed of the truck and then walked over to Logan's side of the car. "Logan, baby it's time wake up. We're home." I unbuckled his seatbelt and tried to pick him up, but he wasn't being very helpful, shrugging sleepily out of my grasp and turning away from me, hoping to catch a couple more minutes of sleep. "Logan come on. Get up big guy." I tried once more to pick him up but he wouldn't budge again.

"Let me get him," Emmett said. I looked up at Emmett and then at Logan and then back at Emmett. After a moment of studying him I moved out of the way and took the place that I had just vacated.

"Hey little buddy. Time to wake up okay. It's almost time for dinner." Logan's eyes fluttered open for a moment before they closed again and he groaned groggily. Emmett picked him up and pulled him out of his car seat. Logan snuggled closer into Emmett's embrace and fisted Emmett's t-shirt in his tiny fist. "Emmy," he mumbled once before rubbing the sleep from his eyes with his free hand.

I closed the truck door after making sure that the locks were set, and went to work retrieving my keys from my purse. I unlocked the door and ushered Emmett in, motioning for him to set Logan on the couch. Emmett sat on the couch and arranged Logan across his lap, making quick work of taking off his shoes and jacket. I took them and placed them by the door and then watched as Logan started to wake up in Emmett's arms, using his free hand to wipe the sleep from his eyes.

"Emmy? Emmy!" He exclaimed once he was more awake. "What you doin' here?"

"My car broke down and your mom said that I could stay here while it was getting worked on." He explained and watched Logan scramble off of his lap to sit next to him, looking up at him with big, curious eyes.

"Why'd your car breakted down?" This was the most he had talked so soon after waking up. Normally it took an arm and a leg to get him to wake up in the mornings. Something that was not pleasant, especially since I wasn't much of a morning person myself.

"I don't know little man, something must not have been working right." Logan nodded, his face becoming gravely serious.

"Gampa and Unka Jake are always tellin' Mommy to get wid of her 'piece of crap truck'."

"Logan," I reprimanded. "We don't talk like that. Even if Grandpa and Uncle Jake say it." Logan bit his lip, a habit that he had no doubt picked up from me. "Sowy Mommy." I shook my head and sighed as I thought about the conversation that I would have to have with Charlie and Jake again about watching their language, normally they were pretty good, but sometimes they forgot that kids had a tendency to hear and repeat things they weren't supposed to.

As Logan avidly started telling Emmett about his morning at the park with Uncle Jake, I couldn't help but scrutinize Emmett to see how he was handling Logan's strange fascination with him. I had to say that I was surprised; Emmett took everything in strides, engaging with Logan in conversation and responding in full to all questions asked.

After a few minutes of watching the two interact, I made my way into the kitchen, grabbing the stew out of the fridge and scooping portions into three bowls. As I put the first bowl into the microwave, with a paper towel over the top, I felt another presence in the room. I turned to find Emmett leaning against the wall, watching me work.

"I put a DVD in for Logan, I hope that's okay. He wanted to watch the 'Magic School Bus'."

"That's fine. Thanks for putting it in for him."

"Do you need any help?" Emmett pushed himself off of the wall and came over to stand next to me.

"Um, if you could get out three cups out from the cupboard directly above the stove and then the silverware that's in the drawer to the left of the dish washer, that would be helpful. Thanks." I took out the first bowl of stew and replaced it with one of the others, setting the warmed up stew on the table.

"No problem." He responded. "What would you like to drink?"

"Milk please," as I got the fresh loaf of bread out to cut, I watched Emmett out of the corner of my eye and saw him grab the cups and silver wear from their respective places and set them on the table before grabbing the milk out of the fridge, the flap of all Logan's pictures that I had hung up on the fridge giving away his location, and pouring it into the two tall glasses that he had previously retrieved.

I couldn't help but notice how at ease he seemed and I couldn't help but feel the same the more I was in his presence.

"Swam," I blurted out before I could refrain myself. Emmett looked up at me with raised eyebrows. "That's my last name. Swan." Understanding washed over his face and he took a moment to study me.

"Bella Swan. Beautiful Swan. It fits you." I bit my lip and tried, and failed, to stop the blush that flowed into my cheeks. Sensing my discomfort, he turned his attention back to his previous task, then walked out of the room to question Logan as to what he would like to drink with his dinner. Apple juice as usual.

"Do you like corn?" I questioned as I cut up several slices of the bread that I had made, along with the stew, this morning while Jake played with Logan.

"Corn? Oh, yeah, I like corn." Emmett took the second bowl of stew out of the microwave and placed the final bowl in.

"It looks really good. Do you like to cook?" He complimented, back to watching my work around the kitchen.

"Thanks. I do like to cook. My mom is horrible in the kitchen and my dad isn't much better, so if we didn't want to order takeout every night or eat anything that was ghastly over or undercooked, I kind of had to learn. My parents didn't force me to; they would have gotten the meals, but I've kind of always like to make stuff so they let me." He nodded and lapsed into silence for a moment.

"So how old is Logan?" He picked back up with the Twenty Questions while I took out a pot and placed it on the stove then took out the corn and butter.

"He just turned five a couple of weeks ago." I grabbed a plate and placed the slices of bread on it and then set it on the table. While Emmett waited for the final bowl to be done, he stood next to me by the stove.

"Cool." Then his voice became a little more hesitant and it took me a minute to fully understand his next question. "Does the Dad help at all?" I froze mid-stir and closed my eyes, taking a shaky swallow.

"No." I responded coldly, ending the conversation before it even really started. Emmett took a hint though and he didn't push the topic.

"So what do you do?" He questioned, getting out the final bowl.

"I'm a 7th grade English teacher." I added some butter to the corn and regretted the abruptness of my answer, but I couldn't shake off the surprise of being caught off guard with that question.

"So where does Logan go while you're at work?" Emmett grabbed three more bowls for the corn and placed the butter on the table for the bread.

"He goes to a preschool in town. He used to stay with my Mom, but then she got a job at the local diner and she wasn't able to watch him anymore, and with my Dad and Jake working as well, there wasn't really any other option. Logan didn't really like the change at first, mainly because he was so used to the quiet and not having anyone else to play with. And some of the other kids are really rambunctious and loud where he's always been more reserved and quiet. He's getting more used to it now, but it's still a work in progress."

"Yeah, I can see that happening." Emmett agreed.

"Would you mind helping Logan pause his movie and tell him that dinner's almost done?"

"Sure," I heard Emmett conversing with Logan and the sound from the TV ceased and they both came back into the kitchen. Emmett asked if there was anything else he could help with and when I insisted that I had the last of it covered, he joined Logan who was sitting at the table, looking longingly at the food.

After I set down a bowl of corn at everyone's place, Logan automatically picked up his spoon, anxious to dig in. "Careful babe, it still might be hot." His lower lip jutted out in disappointment as he took a couple seconds to blow on his spoonful before he ate it greedily, as he did with each of his bites.

The phone rang just moments after we started eating and as I stood up to answer it, I could feel Emmett's eyes on my form, heat flooded into my cheeks and I ducked my head, wishing that I'd left my hair down so that it could hide my face from his curious looks.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hey Bells, its Jake."

"Hey, so what's the diagnosis?"

Jake sighed, "I was right, it is a dead cell in the battery but I can't fix it tonight. I've got a battery in the shed at Dad's but I can't go there just to come back to the shop again. Not tonight. It's getting kinda late and I still have to take Dad to the store. I'm sorry Bells."

I shook my head, knowing that he did try his hardest. "It's not your fault Jake. I understand, and I'm sure Emmett will too. Will you be able to get it done tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I should be able to get it done by lunch."

"Ok. I'll let Emmett know. Thanks again Jake."

"No problem Bells. I'll talk to you later."

"Yep, tell your Dad I said 'hi'."

"Will do." He replied, and the line went dead.

I hung up the phone and went back to the table to find both Logan and Emmett almost done with their first helping.

"That was Jake. He was right about the dead cell, but he won't be able to fix it tonight. He said that he'll have it done by lunch tomorrow though. I'm sorry."

Emmett shrugged, but he didn't look too disappointed. "That's alright. Would you mind if I borrow your phone after dinner? I'll need to call a cab." I nodded my head mutely, my thoughts drifting off to other possibilities.

"Mommy can I weave the table pwease."

"Sure baby. Why don't you get ready for bed okay?"

"Oday Mommy."

"Do you need any help?" He shook his head resolutely and scrambled off of his chair and up the stairs to his room. Emmett and I fell into a silence and I noticed that he had finished his food. "Do you want some more?" I questioned, motioning to his two empty bowls.

"Oh, yeah. If you don't mind." He was about to get up and get it himself, but I beat him to it, taking both of his bowls with me and filling them up again, putting the stew in the microwave to warm up. As I stood with my back to him, I could feel his gaze burning into my back.

"You don't have to call a cab," I relented. "I can take you home tonight and then if you want I can take you out to Jake's tomorrow as well. If you want me to I mean…I'm not trying to force myself on you… I just…" Emmett cut me off as he came to stand next to me. He lifted my chin up with a finger, forcing me to look him in the eye.

"If you don't have anything else to do, I'd really appreciate it if you could give me a ride." He smiled my smile and I couldn't help but get slightly lost in it. The dinging of the microwave brought me back to the present, and with slightly shaky hands I handed him his bowls back.

_Whoa_. Wait a minute. _My_ smile? Since when was it _my_ smile? I barely even knew the dude!

I shook my head to try and clear those kinds of thoughts from my head. I did not need to be thinking those things with him sitting at my table eating dinner. _No. Bad Bella._

"Ok. After dinner then? I'll drive you home. And then… No never mind… stupid idea." I started to trail off at the end, whispering to myself as I took my seat again and began eating.

"What? What were you going to say?" I shook my head and looked over to the seat that Logan vacated. "Bella, what were you going to say?"

I sighed and looked at him, pleading with my eyes for him to just drop it. He raised an eyebrow questioningly, and motioned with his hand for me to continue.

"I was just going to ask if you wanted me to pick you up earlier and then we'd have a brunch…but you probably have way better things to do. It was a stupid idea. I don't know what made me think of it."

"That would be nice." Emmett said, my surprise at his words making me look up at him.

"Are you sure? It was just an offer; I don't want you to feel obligated if you already had plans." Emmett shook his head.

"Honestly Bella. The only people I know here are you and Logan. I don't have any plans at all."

"If you're sure…" I bit my lip.

"Positive." He said, stopping the words that were about to come out of my mouth. I smiled hesitantly at him and went back to eating my food.

Logan came back into the room, freshly dressed in his pajamas and climbed back onto his chair. "You don't have to stay here with us babe. You can go and finish your movie until it's time to take Emmett home." Logan simply shook his head and placed his _Cars_ coloring book on the table, soon followed by his crayons. As Emmett and I finished our meal, Logan kept us company, allowing us to sit in a comfortable silence.

"Would you like some _more_ Emmett?" I questioned teasingly once I realized that he had already finished his seconds when I was almost done with my first helping.

Emmett blushed. "If it's alright. I don't like to pass up on a good home cooked meal, and this is very good meal. And I'm a growing boy." I smiled at his goofiness and stood to grab his bowls and fill them both up again.

When both Emmett and I finished, he grabbed took my bowls as well as his and put them in the dish washer before I could even stand up to do it myself. "Thank you." He smiled back at me. "Are you ready to go now?"

"Whenever you are." He insisted.

"Logan, why don't you get your shoes and jacket on so we can take Emmett home okay?" Logan looked up from the picture of Mater that he was coloring.

"Can't Emmy stay over with us Mommy? We can 'ave a seep over! And I'm not done wit my piture yet. I've gotses to finish it Mommy!" Logan's lower lip jutted out and his eyes got puppy-dog like.

"Logan, we need to get Emmett home soon because he needs to get to bed, just like someone else I know." I raised my eyebrow, pointedly looking at him. "But Mommy!" He protested. "I've gotses to finish my piture! I've just gots to!"

"How about you bring your crayons and picture with us in the car and you can finish it while we're dropping Emmett off. Sound good?" Logan's brow furrowed as he thought it over before he eventually nodded his consent. "Alright. Go get your shoes and jacket on now, okay?" He nodded and, after shoving his crayons in their box, he ran to get his stuff on.

"Thanks for dinner Bella. It was really good." Emmett complimented me, and, of course, my blush started back up again. "Do you always do that when someone compliments you?"

"What?" I asked, clueless.

"Blush." He clarified. "Because if so, I'll have to compliment you more often, and I won't run out of compliments. Ever." I blushed even deeper. "So beautiful," he whispered. Or at least I thought he did… maybe…possibly…no…probably not… I mean, why would he?

"I'm ready Mommy!" Logan called out, breaking me from my stupor.

I looked up at Emmett from under my lashes and I searched through my purse, trying to find those damned keys. Once they were in hand, we headed out to my truck, and, after locking the front door, we were on our way. Emmett told me where he was staying for the time he was here and although I wasn't too familiar with the part of town he was staying in, I was pretty sure I knew where I was going.

"Can you put on music Mommy?" Logan requested from his seat, still devotedly coloring his Mater picture.

"Sure baby. What do you want to listen to?"

"The Banana Man!" That was his favorite. Emmett looked at me curiously.

"The singer's name is Raffi and he sings a banana song and the cover of the album is him with a banana, so Logan calls him the 'Banana Man'." Emmett nodded, and listened to the music that played through the speakers. I bobbed my head with the beat of the music and sang softly to some of the songs, reminiscing.

We pulled into Emmett's temporary driveway and I parked the car, getting out with Emmett following close behind. "I finished my piture!" Logan exclaimed, adding one final detail in one of the corners, concentrating on it diligently, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth as he worked. When his picture was fully finished, he held it up triumphantly, looked at it once more, as if making sure one last time that everything was there, and then he held it out to Emmett. "Fo' you Emmy!" Emmett smiled and took the picture from Logan's outstretched hand.

In the corner that Logan had added the final detail to, I could see the words:

_To Emmy_

_From Logan_

written in his messy scrawl.

"Mommy hangs my pitures up on the figerator." He said matter-of-factly.

"I saw. I'm going to put this up on my fridge too. Thanks bud." Emmett said, and reached in to ruffle Logan's hair. He giggled and grabbed the hand that had previously mused his hair, pulling on it, forcing Emmett to lean into the truck.

Then Logan gave him a hug, wrapping his little arms around Emmett's neck as best as he could in the awkward position. And Emmett hugged him back.

"See you 'morrow Emmy?" I heard Logan ask. "Yep, I'll see you tomorrow little buddy. Be good for your Mom okay?" "Okay." Emmett retreated from the truck, his picture still in hand.

I was about to get into the truck again when Emmett's hand on my shoulder made me pause. "I just wanted to apologize about before… when I asked about Logan's dad. I didn't mean to upset you or anything, I swear. I… I didn't realize that it was a… touchy subject." This was the most nervous I had seen him all day.

"It's not your fault Emmett. I'm the one who should be apologizing. You asked an innocent question and I snapped. I was in the wrong and I should apologize. So, I'm sorry." I smiled gently at him.

"Um…" he cleared his throat. "I'll see you tomorrow then?" I raised my eyebrows at the abrupt change in subject, but refrained from commenting.

"Yeah. I'll pick you up around ten? Is that okay?"

"That's perfect. Do you want my number? Just in case something happens or anything?"

"What's your number?" I questioned, pulling my phone out from my pocket. He recited it to me and I save it in my contacts. "I'll see you tomorrow." I said, and climbed into the driver's seat.

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow." He said, and watched as we drove away.

When Logan and I got home again, we were both ready for bed. I tucked Logan in, surprised beyond belief that he was still tired after that ridiculously long nap, read him his bedtime story, and then headed off to bed myself.

And as I went to sleep that night, I couldn't help but think of one person.

Emmett Cullen.


	2. Meeting Bella

**Chapter 2**

**Emmett's POV**

**Chapter Title: Meeting You**

**Disclaimer: I only own the plot and Logan**

AN: I would like to thank everyone who has stuck with me and my craziness throughout this entire ordeal and anybody who has just found this story, and although I can't promise that everything will be hunky-dory from this point on, I can tell you that I am confident that this story will get done before the year is up. I'm going to try to update every weekend, but as we all know, life can sometimes be a bitch and unfortunately, as much as I love FanFiction and my stories, I can't put FanFiction before my real life. So thank you again and please, please, please review! I can't tell you how much they help me. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Story recommendation:

Crashing Head On by HopelessRomantic79 (Completed/Twilight) Emmett is a hockey player rising up in the ranks when he gets in an accident that threatens his life passion. Broken and mangled, Emmett needs someone to take care of him while he is bedridden, and who better than Bella Swan?

Faith by SpicySugar (Completed/Harry Potter) Draco Malfoy, widower, needs a tutor for his son Scorpious who is more than a little difficult. Draco has found the perfect person: Hermione Granger.

As I walked into the book store, looking for something to keep me occupied, I wondered, not for the first time, what the hell I was doing in the dreary town of Forks, Washington. I had no previous connections to this place, no family or friends who had ever resided here as far as I knew, and there weren't any major sightseeing spots that really stood out to me. But as soon as I saw the little spot on the map that showed everybody else in the world where Forks was, I felt a pull in my chest, something telling me that this was where I needed to be. I didn't have anywhere else I really wanted to go, so I went with this strange feeling, letting it take me where it pleased.

But this morning, when I first woke up, I started to doubt my feeling. I had gotten in late the night before, so I drove straight to the house that I was renting, not going into any of the stores to look at what was here. What I did see, however, didn't really do much for me. Forks itself consisted of a small diner, the police station, a small convenience store, a gas station, a preschool, a school that housed K-8 students, and a high school. There were other towns nearby that had a bigger variety of stores and restaurants, but I didn't want to spend the majority of my vacation in a car going to those other places. I had talked myself out of getting a plane ticket back to Chicago, my home town, three times in the past forty-five minutes.

I forced thoughts of leaving Forks from my mind. I was here; I might as well take the opportunity to just veg out without the chance of any paparazzi flashing cameras in my face every time I tried to venture out of my apartment.

I meandered through the isles, politely declining one of the workers when they asked if I required any assistance finding anything, running my hands over some of the spines, and trying to find a book that caught my attention.

Nothing.

Sighing, I pulled a random book off of one of the shelves and made my way to a comfy looking armchair that resided in a secluded corner of the shop. I forced myself to open the book to the first page and take in the words the author had written.

Ten minutes later and I hadn't gotten farther than the first two sentences. Groaning, I closed the book and rested my head against the back of the couch, closing my eyes and letting the book fall from my hand and onto the floor. I think, but I can't be sure, that I had started to nod off when I felt something pull on my pants leg. Raising an eyebrow in confusion, I opened my eyes and lifted my head off the back of the couch to see a little boy, no more than six, staring up at me through big brown eyes.

"Hi mitter. Can I wead wit you?" He didn't even wait for my answer; he just started to make work of climbing up onto my lap, leaving his jacket lying on the floor next to the chair. "My name's Logan. Wha's your name?"

"Emmett." I answered without thought. "What are we going to read?" Once Logan was situated on my lap just the way he wanted, he thrust the book that he held in his hands at me.

"It's called _Love You Foreva_. Mommy weads it to me 'fore bedtime." I smiled as I looked at the cover and recognized the book from my childhood that my mom had read to me as well. Logan handed me the book and I opened it happily, the book that had previously been taken off the shelf lay forgotten on the floor.

I started to read and Logan followed along, commenting on all of the pictures and pointing out the cat, saying that he really wanted a kitty cat but his Mommy said that they had to wait until he was a little older. But on every other page, Logan would always read:

"I'll love you forever,

I'll like you for always,

As long as I'm living

my baby you'll be."

with me.

When I closed the book after we had finished, Logan took it back, and opened it again to look at the pictures one more time. I smiled and looked at them with him as we got lost in our own little world.

So when I heard a woman calling out: "Logan! Oh thank God!" I couldn't help but jump a little, startled. Logan scampered off of my lap and ran to the woman, an older sister or babysitter I figured, who was running to us, smiling as he was embraced in the woman's arms. The woman looked over Logan for any sign of injury in a motherly manner as she ignored my presence.

I, however, couldn't help but notice her.

She had long, wavy brown hair that she had gathered into a pony tail at the base of her neck. Her face was delicate, full of soft curves and she had the most beautiful brown eyes I had ever seen. Her form was petite, short and skinny, but I sensed a great strength lurking beneath the surface. She had been hurt before, I thought, but she was staying strong for this little boy. The woman wore no make-up or revealing clothes like I was used to women wearing. But somehow, this woman managed to look just as fantastic as any of them on their best day wearing nothing but jeans and a sweater. She was real, something that I wasn't used to. _And_, she wasn't fawning over me.

As the Chicago Bears' star Quarterback it was hard to stay out of the public eye. What made it even worse though was that the female population decided that I was hot and they all wanted to be with me. Some of the other guys liked all the attention, and while I loved what I did, and knew that all the crazy fans came with the job, sometimes all I ever really wanted was some peace and quiet. And to have a girlfriend that wanted to be with me because I'm me, not because I'm a famous football player.

I saw the woman stiffening slightly as she pulled Logan in closer to her. "I'm sorry if he was bugging you sir." The woman started and my heart started to beat faster in my chest. Her voice, it was beautiful. She moved closer to me, positioning her body so that Logan was walking behind her, something that wasn't lost on me. The woman was cautious and she didn't trust easily. Retrieving Logan's jacket, she held it out for him, and helped him maneuver his arms into the sleeves.

"He was no trouble at all. He's a great reader." The woman finally looked up at me with wide eyes. I couldn't help but wonder if she knew who I was when I caught her openly gawking at me. I forced my body to relax, noticing that she was already on edge and not wanting to push her anymore.

The woman cleared her throat and blushed a beautiful red. "Yeah, he loves to read. I'm sorry again but we should be going." The woman looked down at Logan and smiled softly.

"Ok Mommy," he said softly. My eyes bulged. This woman was his _mother_? No. I mean, she looked old enough to be a parent, but I just couldn't believe that she was. Logan looked back at me and smiled again before taking his mother's hand.

I was still trying to comprehend that this woman might already be taken, when I realized that they were walking away from me. I jumped to my feet, calling out to Logan's mom. "Wait, I didn't get your name!" Much to my relief, the woman stopped.

Logan looked up at me with his bright eyes and big smile. She turned around and looked me in the eye. "Bella," she finally replied.

"Will I ever see you again Bella?" I took a couple of steps closer to them. Bella bit her bottom lip and I thought that I just might go crazy. She was so beautiful.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea," she said slowly. I couldn't help the disappointment that flooded through me.

"Do you have a husband or boyfriend?" I had to ask. I knew it was probably wrong and definitely _way_ too forward but I just had to know. Bella frowned, her eyebrows drawing together to show her disapproval.

"I don't see how that's any of your business." I smiled, I couldn't help it. If she would have had a significant other then she would have said so in hope that then I would leave her alone knowing that she wasn't available.

"If we see each other in the near future will you give me a chance? Or at least a last name?" She raised a perfect eyebrow and I could just see the wheels turning in her head as she considered my proposal. I knew that the chances were probably pretty slim that I'd see here again, but I hoped that the odds were in my favor; after all it's a small world. I waited for her answer anxiously, not believing how worked up I was getting over a girl.

But this wasn't just a girl. I reminded myself. This was _Bella_. And Bella was so unique that I knew I would never get the chance to meet anyone even remotely like her.

Finally she nodded her head. "Perfect." I responded, smiling. "I'll be counting the minutes Ms. Bella." I looked down to Logan and wasn't surprised when Bella once again brought him even closer to her. "See ya later Logan."

"Bye, bye Emmett," and he waved at me. I returned his gesture and watched as Bella and Logan scurried from the store. I stood there for a few moments even after Bella and Logan were out of my sight, still mesmerized by what had transpired.

I had had a conversation with a girl. A _normal_ girl. Who had no idea who I was. And she didn't throw herself at me.

That was the first time that had happened to be since my football career had started. Besides my Mom and sister of course. I liked it, I _really_ liked it.

After about ten minutes I left the store after donning my jacket and hat, a goofy smile still in place. I walked out to my car in a trance, not even realizing that I had got in and had been driving for the past twenty minutes. I couldn't help it, I was giddy.

The giddiness dissipated, however, when my car decided to up and die on me. I furrowed my brow in confusion, wondering what was wrong with my car; I pulled off to the shoulder and popped the hood.

I messed around under the hood for a couple of minutes, checking to see if I could see anything major that could have caused this to happen. I wasn't a car expert by any means, but I knew the basics, and I was hoping that they would help me today.

After fifteen minutes of fiddling around I gave up and took out my phone to call my sister. I tried pressing her speed dial, but the screen remained black. Then I hit the power button, thinking that maybe it had gotten pressed on accident. The screen was still black.

I tried turning it on twice more when I realized: the fuckin' thing was dead.

Sighing in frustration, I put my useless phone back in my pocket and began digging around in the glove box for an Owner's Manual or anything else that might be able to help me figure out what to do. Under my breath I started mumbling nonsense things under my breath, complaining about the car and my phone, disbelief about meeting Bella and Logan, and hope that I would get a chance to see them again.

I was so caught up in my inner ramblings that I didn't hear the car approaching, much less the driver getting out of the car. Until I heard it:

_Her_ voice. _Bella's_ voice.

"Sir, do you need any help?" I couldn't help the shit-eating grin that appeared on my face. I had hoped that this would happen; prayed even, for another chance to talk to her, see her. Just being in her _presence_ would be wonderful.

I turned around and couldn't help but smile wider at her shock when she realized who I was. "Hello Miss Bella." I retreated from the car and closed the door behind me, leaning against it casually. Bella didn't respond, but she closed her eyes to take a deep breath and looked behind her at her truck. I followed her gaze and couldn't believe what I saw.

The truck looked like a piece of crap. It didn't look like the sturdiest thing in the world and probably had really shitty gas mileage. I looked inside the truck window and saw Logan fast asleep in the passenger seat.

Worry seeped into my bones as I wondered what Bella would do if she got stranded like I did today. What if Logan was in the car with her? What if she was in a bad part of town? Did she know how to protect herself? Would she be too stubborn to call for help if she needed it? Hell, did she even _have_ a cell phone? Where would Logan go if something happened to her?

With all the worries and questions floating around in my mind, I couldn't think straight and so I pushed all of those thoughts into the back of my mind, forcing myself not to think about them.

"Are you going to tell me your last name now?" I questioned, knowing that she would fight me if I continued to try to get to know her.

"You haven't told me _your_ name," she pointed out stubbornly, trying to draw my attention away from her. _Sorry Bella, not gonna happen._

"Sorry," I grinned sheepishly, wondering what my mom would say about my rudeness, albeit unintentional. "Emmett Cullen at your service." I crossed my fingers behind my back, hoping that she still wouldn't recognize me even after I told her who I was. She narrowed her eyes and scrutinized me but didn't comment on my name. I was still in the shadows.

"I've got some cables in my truck. Do you want to see if we can jump start your car?"

"Sounds good to me Miss Bella." I was about to ask her about her last name again when she turned curtly and went to her truck, moving it over to my side of the road. I watched her every move, unable to keep my eyes off of her as she popped her hood and protruded from the truck with her cables in hand.

I held out my hand for the cables, figuring that she didn't know how to use them, like most of the women that I was used to. Instead she ignored me, attaching the cables by herself to her truck and then handing me the other two so that I could do the same to my car.

"How'd you know what to attach them to?" I questioned, as I clipped on the clamps, happy that she wasn't as helpless as I had originally thought.

"My dad's the Chief of Police and my best friend's a mechanic. Both of them are really overprotective and so they made sure that I know how to change a tire, jump a car, and carry a can of pepper spray with me at all times." She explained as she made her way to start her truck. _Good_. I thought. _She has people to watch over her and Logan._

"But they let you drive this hunk of metal? Shouldn't they be more worried about getting you a safer car for you and your son?" _Opps, there I go talking without thinking again. Mom's gonna have a shit fit._ Bella narrowed her eyes and stalked over to me. I backed up a few steps. I'm man enough to admit that a woman with a purpose scares the living shit out of me. And Bella definitely had a purpose.

"I don't see how it's any of your business Mr. Cullen. And I'll ask you not to question my choice of transportation." I looked down. Mom was really gonna give me a whooping now. Even if I didn't tell her, she always had a knack of knowing when we weren't telling her about something. And she was always less mad when my sister and I told her ourselves instead of her having to find out.

"I apologize Miss Bella. I wasn't in the right." I pleaded with her, using my eyes, not to let my slip up define who she made me out to be.

"Just don't do it again," she warned and started her truck. I watched her for a minute, thinking that she was going to be coming back out, but when I realized that she was going to stay in her truck for longer than I expected, I walked over to the edge of the road that became the forest, shoving my hands in my pockets as I went. I paced back and forth, berating myself for offending her.

"Stupid idiot!" I mumbled to myself. "Mom always told me that my talking was going to come and bite me in the butt. But _nooo_, I couldn't believe her. Damn it! Now she's never going to give you a chance. Way to go Buster. I can have any girl I want, and I mess up the chance that I got with the only girl that I want."

I froze at my words. _The only girl that I want_. Was Bella the only girl I wanted? I met her just today, but my thoughts had been consumed by her ever since.

The same thing had happened with Tanya though, and look how that turned out…

"No," I told myself. "Bella isn't Tanya." I knew that I wanted Bella. Or at least get to know her better. There was something about her that drew me in. I had no idea what that something was, but just like the pull that brought me to Forks, Washington, I decided to appease it and try to find out more about this cagy woman.

At the sound of gravel crunching under shoes, I looked up to see Bella striding towards me. I watched her descend to me, my eyes widened in alarm when she tripped over something and landed on her backside, using her hands to break her fall.

I hurried over to her side, instinctively checking her for any blood that might have surfaced and running my hand down her back. Picking up her hands in mine, I brushed away the pebbles and traced my larger fingers over the torn skin. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Emmett." She replied, removing her hands from mine and placing them placatingly over mine. I looked at her disbelievingly. "Really, I'm fine. I fall all of the time; I'm kind of a klutz."

"You're sure you're okay?" She nodded her head determinedly and after looking her over once more, I held out a hand to her." Bella took my proffered hand and using her free hand, wiped the pebbles from her butt.

Now that the shock of her possibly getting hurt was over, I was able to enjoy the feeling of her hand in mine. While my hands were large and calloused from long days' work, Bella's were smaller and smooth. Though I knew that she put a lot of effort into her job, whatever it was. Bella's hand was warm and offered comfort, just like she did.

"Can I have my hand back?" She asked quietly.

"Oh! Yeah, sorry." I dropped her hand quickly, not wanting to affront her any more than I already had. "Um, I just wanted to apologize again for what I said earlier. I didn't mean to offend you… Sometimes I just don't think before I say stuff." Bella shrugged off my apology and started walking back up the slope to the cars. I tried to stay close to her, not too close to where she would be uncomfortable, but close enough, that I would be able to catch her if she tripped again.

"We're humans. Human make mistakes all the time, it's in our make-up. Nobody's perfect." She responded after a moment of silence. When we got to the cars again, without a word, she turned off her truck and suggested that I try to start mine.

My car started, but it didn't run. Although I was upset by this, I couldn't help but be happy that it meant that I would get to spend more time with Bella. She started her car again and after we let it fun for a while, we tried starting my car again. But it didn't run.

We waited in silence while the truck ran. I wanted to fill the void with questions about her, but I knew that I'd probably be pushing my luck if I asked for anything more than she had already given. It was going to take a lot to get her to agree to a relationship with me, I knew that, and the fact that I lived hours away and our seeing of each other wouldn't be in my favor. But I hoped that she would overlook those cons and eventually trust me enough to try being in a relationship with me.

After the third time we tried getting my car to run, I could tell that Bella was getting really frustrated.

"Maybe I should call my friend, he's a mechanic and he can check your car out. Plus it's getting late and I really should be getting Logan home, I'm surprised that he's slept this long. But if he sleeps any longer, he won't go to bed tonight." I nodded in understanding, wondering if this was the same mechanic friend that she had been talking about earlier, the overprotective one.

She grabbed her phone out of her purse, something that I was very glad to see, and dialed a number walking away from me a couple of feet. I couldn't hear the voice on the other end of the line, but hearing Bella's was the only one that I really cared to hear.

"Hey Quil, its Bella. Is Jake there?" Silence "Things are pretty good. Is Jake there?" She repeated. "I have a favor to ask you. If you're not too busy of course." She wasn't one to call in a lot of favors, I thought. "My friend's car won't start and I was wondering if you could come and take a look at it. We've tried jumping it three times and it still won't run." I smiled dorkily when she called me her friend. _Well of course she's going to call you her friend dumbass_, a voice inside my head retorted. _What else is she going to call you?_ I frowned knowing that Voice was right. I missed out on some of the conversation, but I figured that her friend, _Jake_, was coming when I heard her relay our location.

Coming back over to my side she spoke. "Jake's coming out. He said he'd be here in about thirty minutes or so." I nodded and watched her out of the corner of my eye as she rubbed her hands over her arms.

"You cold?" Bella gave a hesitant nod. "Why don't you go sit in your truck until your friend gets here. You'll be warmer." She shook her head.

"I can't just leave you out here by yourself." I rolled my eyes and removed my jacket. Bella shook her head more determinedly this time and held out her hands. "I can't take your jacket. I'm fine. Really." I shook my head.

"You're cold and you won't go warm up in your car. You're taking the jacket. I don't get cold that much anyways. I just have it because my Mom always told me never to leave without a coat. _'You can always take layers off,'_ she'd always say." I held out the jacket for her to slip into. I stood in front of her once the oversized jacket hung off her shoulders and zipped the jacket up, then proceeding to pull the hood over her head, moving the hair that got in the way after it freed itself from her ponytail. I couldn't help it; I let my fingers linger on her cheek, loving how soft it was. She blushed and moved her head to the side, displacing my fingers from her cheek. I dropped my head to my side glumly and moved back to her side, crossing my arms over my chest again.

"Warmer?" I asked.

She nodded, "much thank you." Her gaze went to her son who was still sleeping soundly in the truck, his head resting against the window.

"Does he talk to strangers often?"

Bella shook her head. "This is the first time he's done it. And I'm worried that it'll become a habit. Normally he's really quiet and reserved, only talking to family and friends. I have no idea what made him go up to you." This was her worst fear, I realized as I listened to her words. She was afraid that I was going to take Logan from her in the store, which was why she had been so… _forthcoming_. Not.

I knew that any parent was worried about their child getting taken away from them. But with Bella I thought that it went deeper than just parental worry. I thought that someone _had_ tried to take Logan away from her and she was determined not to let that happen again. Not that I blamed her. Logan was a great kid; I wouldn't want him taken away from me either.

"I like kids, maybe he sensed that. They have really great intuition." I watched her nod her head robotically. "I wouldn't ever hurt him. Or you. Or any other kid for that matter. I think that shit is sick." She nodded her head again, this time more accepting.

"I'm starting to realize that. But you have to understand, I'm a mother. I don't know what I'd do if I lost my baby. He means the world to me." I nodded.

"I know. I mean, I don't _know_ know because, well I'm not a woman, and I'm definitely not a mom. But I understand what you mean. My Mom's always been really protective over my sister and me. My Dad too, but my Mom more so. The maternal instinct I guess. He seems like he's a good kid though."

"Yeah," Bella whispered. "He's a very good kid. I love him so much. I don't know what I'd do without him." I turned around at the sound of an engine idling down the road and Bella followed my gaze smiling when she saw the Black Mechanics logo on the side of the truck.

My body stiffened and I stood up straight, I couldn't help the jealousy that flooded through me when I saw Bella go running into the strange man's arms and embracing him warmly. "Bells," I heard him say, and I automatically hated the nickname. "You just saw me this morning." But if I thought that seeing her running to him was bad, that was nothing compared to seeing him throw an arm around her possessively as they came back over by me. "Where's the little big man?" I could only assume he was talking about Logan. "Sleeping in the car," Bella responded, "you wore him out today at the park." _Jake_ smiled. "What can I say?" I play a mean game of Hot Lava Monster." I could play a mean game of Hot Lava Monster too.

"Emmett, this is my friend Jacob Black. Jake, this is Emmett Cullen." Jake's eyes grew wide as he recognized me. _Shit. I wonder if he'll tell Bella_. I held out my hand and Jake grabbed it and tried to squeeze the ever-loving-shit out of my hand. I smirked. It turned out working out was better for something else besides staying in shape for football and being healthy. I had to give Jake his props though, even though I clearly had the upper hand, Jake stuck it out for five minutes before he let go. Not on his own volition, I realized when I saw him rubbing his stomach where I figured Bella had elbowed him.

"What was that for?" He demanded. Bella just shrugged and looked innocent. "I don't know what you're talking about Jake." Jake glowered at me but moved to my car, messing around under the hood.

I stood next to him for the first couple of minutes, watching him work. I didn't like the guy, but I had to admit that it looked like he knew his way around cars pretty well. My sister was big on cars as well so I knew a little bit more than the average person but I'm definitely not mechanic worthy. But then I realized that I was missing out on spending time with Bella, so I let Jake work his magic while I went back over by Bella.

"You warm enough?" I asked.

"Yeah, do you want your jacket back now?"

I shook my head. "You hold onto it. I'm good." We stood in silence as the sky had started to darken around us, bringing with it another chill. Twenty minutes later, Jake made his way back over to us, wiping his grease covered hands on a rag that he pulled out of his back pocket.

"So what's the news?" Bella asked anxiously beside me.

"I can't tell for sure, but from that quick look, I'd bet that one of the battery's cells is dead so I'm going to have to tow it back to the shop." Bella sighed. "How long do you think it'll take?" Jake shrugged. "It all depends on if I'm right or not. It's almost closing time and I can't ask the guys to stay any longer than they already have. Maybe by lunch-time tomorrow."

"Is there a chance that you'd be able to get it done tonight?" Bella asked.

"I'll try, but I can't promise you anything. I have to get back to help my dad go to the store tonight. Rachel's coming for a visit." Bella nodded and turned to me, biting her lip again.

"If you want, you can come back to my place and have some dinner while you wait. I've got some beef stew and bread."

I smiled, doing a little victory dance in my mind, she trusted me enough to take me back to her place. _Yes_! "That'd be nice. If you don't mind that is."

"Let me just go make some room in my truck." Bella left my side and went over to the driver's seat. Jake wasted no time, starting right when Bella was out of earshot, but he still whispered.

"What the hell are you doing?" He demanded.

My brows drew together. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Jake scowled. "Don't try to pull the bullshit with me. Bella's a good person. She's not just a one-night stand."

"You think I don't know that?" I whisper-yelled back. "I'm not trying to use her!"

"Then why doesn't she know who you really are? Huh? Why haven't you told her?" Yep, this was definitely the same overprotective mechanic friend she had been talking about earlier.

"I'm going to tell her." And I was… just not yet. Jake studied me.

"If you hurt her, I swear, I will beat the crap out of you and I'm sure her father would be more than willing to help. And don't think that just because you're a famous football player we'll hold back."

I nodded and we both shut up when we saw Bella coming our way. She raised an eyebrow questioningly but when neither of us offer up an answer, she let it go.

"Will you need any help getting the car up?" I asked. Jake shook his head.

"Alright, call me when you get back to the shop okay?" Bella said. Jake nodded and held out his arms to her again, which she eagerly entered. I wanted to punch the fucker, rubbing shit in my face…

"Ready?" Bella asked me after she retreated from Jake's embrace. I nodded and smiled and waited as she waved once more to Jake before I followed Bella over to her truck. "You'll have to sit in the middle. Logan isn't exactly a waking up person, especially in a car." I shrugged. "Doesn't really matter to me, I'm just glad I have a ride. I really appreciate it Bella." The climb into the truck was awkward, having to fold my body strangely to get in, and I was thankful that I didn't have to do this is my own car. I had to admit, I really didn't like how cramped the truck cab was but I did like being close to Bella. I liked that a lot.

Bella pulled out onto the street after waving once again, to Jake. I started the conversation, asking her about generic stuff: how long had she been living in Forks, if she liked it here, etc… I was disappointed when responded with vague answers. I didn't expect her to disclose her heart and soul to me, but I had hoped for a little more. Realizing that she wasn't going to give me anymore in other responses, I stopped questioning her, and started to tell her a bit more about myself.

"I've got one older sister who I'm crazy protective over even though she's constantly telling me that she can look out for herself. I was born and raised in Chicago; or rather a ridiculously small suburb that nobody knows exists so I just say I Chicago. My Dad is a doctor and my mom's a philanthropist for a lot of charities. And I'm a die-hard Momma's boy." I trailed off and talked about our Game Night on Thursday, Movie Night on Friday, and Sunday Brunches.

Somewhere in the middle of my ramblings, I had lost Bella. I wondered if I was boring her and so she was just blocking me out. But her expression wasn't one of boredom though; it was full of regret and sadness.

"Bella. Bella? Are you okay?" Bella blinked out of her fog and looked at me for a second before turning her attention back to the road.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. I must've zoned out." I let my gaze rest on her for a moment, making sure that she was, as she said, okay.

Five minutes later she pulled into a driveway and got out, leaving the door open for me as she went over to Logan to get him out. As I got out, Bella tried to coax her son into waking up. "Logan, baby it's time to wake up. We're home." Bella unbuckled his seatbelt and tried to pick him up, but Logan was being anything but helpful, dead weight as he continued on in his deep sleep. "Logan come on. Get up big guy." Bella tried once more but Logan still remained in his seat.

"Let me get him," I said. Bella looked back and forth between her son and I before she finally relented and moved out of the way. "Hey little buddy. Time to wake up okay. It's almost time for dinner." His peepers opened for a moment before they squeezed shut again and he groaned. I pulled him into my arms and he automatically wrapped his legs and arms around me, using one of his tiny fists to latch onto my shirt as he nestled his head into my shoulder. "Emmy," he mumbled as he used his free hand to wipe at his eyes, I could listen to him call me that all day and never tire of it.

Bella closed the truck door and got her keys from her purse, unlocking her front door and ushering me in and pointing to the couch, telling me to set her son down. I should've, I know I should've, but I didn't want to set him down just yet. So I sat down on the couch and situated Logan so that he was now on my lap as I took off his jacket and shoes and handed them off to Bella who put them by the door. Logan slowly started to wake up in my arms, shifting around more and opening hooded eyes more frequently.

"Emmy? Emmy!" He exclaimed when his eyes were wide and full of life. "What you doin' here?"

"My car broke down and your mom said that I could stay here while it was getting worked on." Logan scrambled from my lap and I winced as one of his legs got a little too close to _the goods_, which would _not_ have been pleasant.

"Why'd your car breakted down?" I looked at Bella out of the corner of my eye, watching her stand back and watch my conversation with her son.

"I don't know little man; something must not have been working right." Logan nodded and I couldn't help but smirk at how serious he became.

"Gampa and Unka Jake are always tellin' Mommy to get wid of her 'piece of crap truck'."

"Logan," Bella reprimanded. "We don't talk like that. Even if Grandpa and Uncle Jake say it." I raised my eyebrow at the language and looked to see what Logan would do. He bit his bottom lip between his tiny teeth and his head fell slightly. "Sowy Mommy." He said softly, before turning to me. Bella shook her head and left the room into what I saw was the kitchen.

Logan watched his mom for a moment and then turned back to me. "Guess what I did wit my Unka Jake this mornin' Emmy!"

"What'd you do this morning?" I asked just as enthusiastically as he did.

"Unka Jake tooked me to da park! We payed Hot Wava Monter and Unka Jake was da monter and he was tryin' to catchted me. And we ran all over da park. Then we playded Hide N' Seek and Unka Jake couldn' find me! I twickted him good." He said matter-of-factly.

"Really? That sounds really fun Logan. Did you have fun?" Logan nodded eagerly. "Do you like playing at the park?"

Logan nodded again. "Yeah. I love da park. Especially going down da slides. They're my favorwit. There's a spinny slide dat I _really_ really like. Unka Jake went down it with me and we was laughin'.

I loved hearing about what Logan had done this morning, but it was frustrating listening to it with _Uncle Jake_ this and _Uncle Jake_ that. "Well maybe you and I will make our own trip to the park sometime soon huh?"

"Yeah, yeah! I wanna go to da park wit you Emmy!"

I couldn't help but smile at his natural happiness. "I'll talk to your momma about when we can go okay?"

"Okay Emmy! Can you put in my Magic School Bus movie?" Uh…

"Sure thing buddy." Now I just needed to figure out how to get the damn thing on. Thankfully Bella's system wasn't too complicated and it only took me a couple of minutes to get everything up and running.

"I'm gonna go talk to your mom okay bud? You ok in here?" Logan only nodded, already engrossed in the world of Mrs. Frizzle.

I walked into the kitchen and watched Bella work from my spot in the doorway. She turned around after a moment and I was once again amazed by her. "I put a DVD in for Logan, I hope that's okay. He wanted to watch the Magic School Bus."

"That's fine. Thanks for putting it in for him." She turned back to her work, putting a bowl in the microwave.

"Do you need any help?" I pushed myself off of the wall and went to stand by Bella, watching her work efficiently.

"Um, if you could get out three cups of from the cupboard directly above the stove and then the silverware that's in the drawer to the left of the dish washer, that would be helpful. Thanks."

"No problem. What would you like to drink?" I went were she told me, finding everything exactly where she said I'd find it. We worked well with each other, not really getting in each other's way even though our space was limited and seeming to know what the other needed right before they would ask for it.

"Milk please," she responded as she started to cut a loaf of bread tastefully. After setting the cups and silverware on the table, I went to the fridge to get the milk and smiled when I saw a whole bunch of hand-drawn pictures taped on the doors. Most of them were of two people who I assumed to be Bella and Logan, but some of them had more people who were all sitting together and holding each other's hands. And then there was one lone picture of a grey cat, at least that's what I guessed it was, since the word _Kitty_ was scrawled in big letters at the top.

I poured the two big glasses that I had gotten out with milk and put the gallon away. I was about to go ask Logan what he wanted to drink with his dinner when Bella's outburst stopped me.

"Swan." She blurted out. _What the hell does a swan have to do with anything?_ I thought to myself. "That's my last name. Swan." _Ohhhh_. I looked at Bella curiously for a moment, wondering what made her trust me enough to tell me.

"Bella Swan. Beautiful Swan. It fits you." Bella bit her bottom lip and blushed at my compliment as she ducked her head, trying to escape from my curious gaze. I looked away and turned back to the living room again.

. His eyes never strayed from the TV when I walked in. "Hey Logan, what do ya want to drink with your dinner?"

"Apple Juice pease Emmy." He was sucking in what Mrs. Frizzle was telling her class and everybody watching, about the color spectrum. Walking back into the kitchen, I found Bella cutting up some more slices of bread.

"Do you like corn?" She questioned. That was random.

"Corn? Oh, yeah, I like corn." After pouring Logan's drink and setting them and the silverware on the table, I took the bowl out of the microwave and set it on the table as well.

"It looks really good. Do you like to cook?" I leaned against the counter, my arms loosely crossed over my chest as I watched her work.

"Thanks. I do like to cook. My mom is horrible in the kitchen and my dad isn't much better, so if we didn't want to order takeout every night or eat anything that was ghastly over of undercooked, I kind of had to learn. My parents didn't force me to; they would have gotten the meals, but I've kind of always liked to make stuff so they let me."

"So how old is Logan?" I questioned after a moment, feeling really awkward about the whole Twenty Questions thing, but not knowing how else to get to know her and Logan better. Bella moved around to various cupboards as she took out a pot, butter, and a bag of frozen corn.

"He just turned five a couple of weeks ago." She got a plate and put the slices of bread that she had cut up on it and put it in the middle of the table. As I waited for the green numbers on the microwave to countdown to zero, I stood next to Bella by the stove.

"Cool." I had to ask. I knew she probably wouldn't tell me, but she had told me her last name, so maybe she would trust me enough with this too. I hoped so, God I hoped so. "Does the Dad help at all?" Bella froze right in the middle of a stir and her body posture stiffened.

"No." She said coldly. I might not be the smartest person on the block, but I could take a hint, and I knew that this conversation was finished. I hadn't meant to upset her, lord knows that was the farthest thing from my mind, I just hoped she wouldn't hold this against me. She clearly wasn't going to be trusting me with anything major right off the bat.

"So what do you do?" I asked as I got out the final bowl when the annoying beeping started, hoping that she would forgive me for asking the previous question.

"I'm a 7th grade English teacher." Bella added a spoonful of butter to the corn. I hoped she was okay with me asking her all of these questions, she didn't seem to be very forthcoming with her answers. I got three more bowls for the corn and I put the butter, which she wasn't using anymore, on the table for the bread.

"He goes to a preschool in town. He used to stay with my mom, but then she got a job at the local diner and she wasn't able to watch him anymore, and with my dad and Jake working as well, there wasn't really any other option. Logan didn't really like that change at first, mainly because he was so used to the quiet and not having anyone else to play with. And some of the other kids are really rambunctious and loud where he's always been more reserved and quiet. He's getting more used to it now, but it's still a work in progress."

"Yeah, I can see that happening." Even though Logan had been really open with me, he did seem like one of the quieter kids.

"Would you mind helping Logan pause his movie and tell him that dinner's almost done?"

"Sure," I went back to see Logan watching a new episode about butterflies. "Hey Logan. It's almost time for dinner bud, so we need to pause your movie." Logan frowned, but he nodded.

"Okay Emmy. My tummy's been talking to me. It's tellin' me to eat!" He scrambled off of the couch and came to stand by me as I paused his movie and turned off the TV.

Logan climbed up onto his chair and after asking Bella if she needed anymore help, which she responded no to, I sat in a chair and waited for Bella to come join us with the corn as I looked longingly at the food. I had had a big breakfast, but a small lunch and I was starting to regret not eating more.

Bella spooned out corn for everyone and then sat down, smiling when Logan anxiously dug in. "Careful babe, it still might be hot." Logan's lower lip jutted out and he looked at his food angrily before he took a couple of minutes to blow on his stew before he ate it greedily.

The phone rang before Bella could take her first bite. I watched her as she walked to answer the phone. "Hello?" She answered. I ate slower, trying to focus on listening to her voice, but she was talking too softly. Sighing, I focused on eating my wonderful dinner and less on what Bella was talking about.

After a couple of minutes, she hung up the phone and came back over to us. "That was Jake. He was right about the dead cell, but he won't be able to fix it tonight. He said that he'll have it done by lunch tomorrow though. I'm sorry."

I shrugged. Maybe this would mean that I could spend more time with Bella now. "That's alright. Would you mind if I borrow your phone after dinner? I'll need to call a cab." Bella nodded, munching thoughtfully on a bite of food.

"Mommy can I weave the table pwease?"

"Sure baby. Why don't you get ready for bed okay?"

"Oday Mommy." I watched them talk with each other and couldn't help but smile. Bella was an amazing mother; there was no doubt about that. She had Logan and was raising him all by herself with no one by her side. I was sure that she her parents and Jake had helped her, but they weren't with her 24/7. Bella Swan was a strong woman, of that there was no doubt in my mind. She hadn't told me the circumstances of Logan's consummation, but I had the sinking feeling they were anything but good. But Bella had pushed through the struggles, and here she was now. A beautiful, strong, independent woman.

"Do you need any help?" Logan shook his head and scrambled off of his chair as he bounded up the stairs. I finished up my last spoonful of corn and then leaned back in my chair. "Do you want some more?" She asked me softly.

"Oh, yeah. If you don't mind." I was about to stand but Bella beat me to it, grabbing both of my bowls and filling them up.

"You don't have to call a cab." I stood and made my way over to her side silently. "I can take you home tonight and then if you want I can take you out to Jake's tomorrow as well. If you want me to I mean… I'm not trying to force myself on you… I just…" I slowly extended my hand toward her face, giving her enough time to turn away, and lifted her chin up with a finger, making her meet my gaze.

"If you don't have anything else to do, I'd really appreciate it if you could give me a ride." I smiled, hoping to ease her nerves a bit. Bella's beautiful brown eyes searched my face, looking for something, but what I had no idea.

The microwave chose that moment to start beeping and Bella pulled away from me, opening the microwave with shaky hands before handing them off to me and heading back to her seat, looking at war with herself.

"Ok. After dinner then? I'll drive you home. And then… No never mind… stupid idea." Bella's voice trailed off and she started eating again.

"What? What were you going to say?" Bella shook her head and looked at anything but me. "Bella, what were you going to say?" I insisted.

Bella sighed and she finally looked back at me. Her beautiful browns were voicing what her vocal cords couldn't or wouldn't at the moment. I raised an eyebrow and motioned for her to continue, wondering what had gotten her rattled.

"I was just going to ask if you wanted me to pick you up earlier and then we'd have a brunch…but you probably have way better things to do. It was a stupid idea. I don't know what made me think of it." My eyes widened. She was inviting me over again! Well, sorta. Okay, so she wasn't inviting me over, but she did want to see me again!

"That would be nice." _More than nice. Try fan-freakin-tastic_. Bella looked up at me, startled. Probably wondering why a guy had just agreed to spend more time with her _and_ her five year old son.

I was about to apologize to her about the male gender. Some of us were rather stupid when it came to women who already had kids. But I thought that that might be a little too forward for Bella right now, so I held my tongue.

"Are you sure? It was just an offer; I don't want you to feel obligated if you already had plans." I shook my head and leaned forward in my chair, wondering what I could do or say to get her to understand that I really and truly wanted to do a brunch with her and Logan.

"Honestly Bella. The only people I know here are you and Logan. I don't have any plans at all."

"If you're sure…" Bella bit her lip. Damn. She was starting to make me crazy when she did that as all my brains started to head down South.

"Positive." I said, cutting her off, and effectively putting a temporary stop to any inappropriate thoughts. She smiled and we went back to our food.

When Logan came back in the room, dressed in red and blue pajamas with Mater, from Cars, on the front I couldn't help but smile. Mater was one of my favorites too.

"You don't have to stay here with us babe. You can go and finish your movie until it's time to take Emmett home." Logan shook his head as he climbed onto his chair again and set a Cars coloring book and crayons down. I watched him flip to a picture of Mater before I focused on my food again.

"Would you like some more Emmett?" Bella asked disbelievingly as she motioned to my empty bowls once again.

I blushed. "If it's alright. I don't like to pass up on a good home cooked meal, and this is a very good meal. And I'm a growing boy." Bella smiled and my bowls, filling them up once more.

When Bella and I finished I grabbed Bella's bowls and utensils and put everything in the dish washer before she could get up to do it.

"Thank you." I smiled at her over my shoulder. "Are you ready to go now?"

"Whenever you are." I said, wishing I could spend more time with her tonight, even though I would be seeing her in just a few short hours, many of which I would be sleeping for, for brunch.

"Logan, why don't you get your shoes and jacket on so we can take Emmett home okay?" Logan looked up at Bella.

"Can't Emmy stay over with us Mommy? We can 'ave a seep over! And I'm not done wit my piture yet. I've gotses to finish it Mommy!" I liked the way Logan was thinking. A sleep over definitely sounded like a good idea. Logan jutted out his lower lip and his eyes transformed into innocent puppy dog eyes. Bella stood strong, though I had no idea how she did it, I would've caved the instant I saw those eyes.

"Logan, we need to get Emmett home soon because he needs to get to bed, just like someone else I know." She raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at her son, reminding me so much of my mom when Rose and I used to beg to stay up longer.

"But Mommy! I've gotses to finish my piture! I've just gots to!" How did Bella stand those eyes? She _still_ wasn't giving in.

"How about you bring your crayons and picture with us in the car and you can finish it while we're dropping Emmett off. Sound good?" I watched Logan think it over carefully before he nodded. "Alright. Go get your shoes and jacket on now, okay?" Logan nodded once more, shoved all his crayons into their box, and then ran out of the room.

"Thanks for dinner Bella. It was really good." Bella blushed. "Do you always do that when someone compliments you?" She was so beautiful, and then she would blush and look all innocent.

"What?"

"Blush. Because if so, I'll have to compliment you more often and I won't run out of compliments. Ever." And even though I had only known her for a couple of hours I knew that to be true. Bella blushed deeper. "So beautiful." I whispered.

"I'm ready Mommy!" Logan called out. Bella searched through her purse, for her keys I presumed. Bella locked the front door and we headed out to her truck.

"Can you put on music Mommy?" Logan asked after I relayed to Bella where I was staying.

"Sure baby. What do you want to listen to?"

"The Banana Man!" Who the hell was that? I had heard some crazy band names in my time like the Bare Naked Ladies for instance or the D-Tent Boys. But I had _never_ heard of _The Banana Man_. I looked to Bella, hoping for an explanation.

"The singer's name is Raffi and he sings a banana song and the cover of the album is him with a banana, so Logan calls him 'The Banana Man'." I nodded and listened closely to the music that radiated from the truck's speakers.

I was distracted however, when I saw Bella start to bob her head in time to the beat. And then she started singing softly and I just about lost it. Her voice was soft and pure and it meshed perfectly with the singers. She knew all of the words and never came in too early or too late if there was break in the singing. For the rest of the ride, I listened to Bella sing.

When Bella pulled into my driveway, my heart fell, knowing that our time was coming to a close. I got out and was about to tell Bella something when Logan shouted out: "I finished my piture!" Just as he started adding one final touch to his picture. He looked it over once before handing it out to me. "Fo' you Emmy!" I smiled, and took the picture from Logan.

My eyes scanned all over the paper, taking in each and every detail. My favorite was seeing Logan's handwriting in one of the corners:

_To Emmy_

_From Logan_

"Mommy hangs my pitures up on the figerator." He told me earnestly.

"I saw. I'm going to put this up on fridge too. Thanks bud." I reached my hand in and ruffled Logan's wavy hair. He giggled at my antics and grabbed my hand, pulling me back into the truck. Logan wrapped his arms around my neck as best as he could. I wrapped an arm around his as well, patting his back and bringing him in close.

"See you 'morrow Emmy?"

"Yep, I'll see you tomorrow little buddy. Be good for your Mom okay?"

"Oday." He said, squeezing me once more before letting me go. I retreated from the truck.

Bella was about to climb back into the truck when I put a hand tentatively on her shoulder. "I just wanted to apologize about before… when I asked about Logan's dad. I didn't mean to upset you or anything, I swear. I…I didn't realize that it was a… touch subject." I hoped that she would accept my apology and not hold my mistake against me.

"It's not your fault Emmett. I'm the one who should be apologizing. You asked an innocent question and I snapped. I was in the wrong and I should apologize. So, I'm sorry." She smiled at me. I wanted to tell her that it most definitely wasn't her fault but I didn't want to argue with her so I let her comment go.

"Um…" I cleared my throat. "I'll see you tomorrow then?" Bella raised her eyebrows curiously.

"Yeah. I'll pick you up around ten? Is that okay?"

"That's perfect. Do you want my number? Just in case something happens or anything?" _Like maybe you just want to call me in the middle of the night and talk?_

"What's your number?" She asked, taking her phone out from her pocket. I watched her punch in the numbers that I told her as she saved me in her Phone Book. "I'll see you tomorrow." She said and climbed into the truck and drove away.

I don't remember doing it, but I must have unlocked the front door, climbed up the stairs and undressed because I was lying in bed in my boxers.

I sighed as I thought about the day's events.

Back home I was constantly ambushed by women who threw themselves at me. But none of them did anything for me. They were all fake and just looking for their fifteen minutes of fame. Bella wasn't like that at all though. She was real. And she always put Logan first. And the best part was that she treating me like a normal person, not a famous football player.

I liked her. I liked her a lot. Never before had I reacted to a woman like I had to Bella. And that scared me a little bit. Was this natural? And what would she do when she did find out who I was? Would she still treat me the same? And I lived in Chicago, if something did happen between us would we be able to make it work?

But there was one thing I was sure about: I cared about Bella and Logan Swan.

_ Just go with the flow Em. That's all you can do. You don't even know if something is going to happen between you two._

As I went to sleep that night, I couldn't help but think of one person.

Bella Swan.


	3. Before it Begins

**Chapter 3**

**Bella's POV**

**Chapter Title:**

**Day: Sunday, Week 1**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations:**

Heavy in Your Arms by sadtomato (Twilight/Completed)

If it Kills Me by Hidge (Harry Potter/Completed)

My eyes languidly drifted open as I woke; my face basked in sunlight that crept in through the windows. A tired smile erupted on my face and I buried my head in my pillow. I stretched for a moment, enjoying the peace and quiet of the house, and looked to my clock on my bedside table. The little green lights told me that it was seven o'clock and I groaned. I still had forty-five minutes until my alarm clock was scheduled to go off. I never could sleep in until my alarm blared, I don't know why I even set it, but I was too paranoid that if I didn't, then I _would_ sleep in.

Sitting up, I grabbed my book off of my bedside table and flipped open to where I last left off. I drank in the words as an alcoholic would consume liquor: thirsting for more. When my alarm went off, I regretfully set my book down, after bookmarking my page, and climbed out of bed, heading off to my bathroom.

Knowing that Logan would sleep for at least another hour, I took my time in the shower, letting the warm water pound on my back and relax my tense muscles as I took care of business. When done, I wrapped a towel around myself and brushed out my hair, making sure to get rid of all the snarls.

I went to my dresser and pulled out some underwear and a bra and then slipped into a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt, bringing a pair of socks downstairs with me. Making my way into the kitchen, I grabbed an apple and a glass of milk for myself and sat at the table to eat my snack that would hold me over until we went to eat with Emmett.

I was about to go get my book when Logan surprised me by walking into the kitchen, his favorite teddy bear clutched in his arms. "Hey, baby. How'd you sleep?" Logan ignored me and climbed onto my lap, snuggling into my arms. I smiled and didn't take any offense to him not answering my question. My baby boy didn't like to wake up; normally he wouldn't start conversing with others until he had been up for about an hour, sometimes more.

I looked at the clock, noticing that we only had about half an hour before we needed to be on our way to go pick up Emmett. I kept silent though, giving Logan a few more minutes to wake up in peace before I helped him get ready for the day.

"Logan." I started, he shifted in my arms. "We're meeting Emmett for breakfast today and we need to leave soon so you need to go get ready. Okay?" Logan nodded his head into my shoulder once. I smiled and stood, holding him close to me as I carried him into his room and set him on his bed, going to his dresser.

I got some clothes out for him and helped him out of his pajamas and into the clothes that I picked out for him. Logan was silent but cooperative as I got him ready for the day as he buried his face into his Teddy's fur. "Okay baby. Why don't you go brush your teeth and then come downstairs and we'll head out to pick up Emmett." Logan nodded and scooted off his bed, dragging his feet across the floor as he made his way to the bathroom.

After laying his clothes on his bed, I made my way back downstairs where I donned a light jacket and shoes. When Logan came trudging in five minutes later, Teddy still in hand but now he had a spot of toothpaste on his cheek. I held his jacket out to him and reminded him which shoe went on which foot when he accidentally put his left foot in his right Croc.

As I locked up the house, Logan moseyed over to the truck, waiting for me to help him up. I started up the car, hoping to get the heat going so it wouldn't be too cold, and set my purse in the seat between us, feeling guilty that Emmett had to squeeze into the small cab. Picking Logan up, I set him in his seat and strapped him in, placing a kiss on his forehead before closing his door and getting in.

This car ride, Logan didn't ask me to put on any music; so we drove to Emmett's in silence, Logan and Teddy looking out the window. I pulled into Emmett's driveway and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Logan become slightly more attentive. Emmett must have been looking for us, because not a minute or so after I parked, he was walking out to us. I got out and smiled at him.

"Morning." He greeted, returning my smile before he climbed into the truck. I got in after him and started to drive into town. Right when Emmett entered the truck's cab, Logan handed him Teddy as way of introductions. "Who's this?" He asked curiously, wiping the toothpaste off of Teddy's cheek.

"Teddy." Logan stated and looked up at Emmett.

"Does Teddy sleep with you at night?" Logan nodded affirmatively. "I had a Teddy when I was younger, except his name was Boo. He would sleep with me at night too." Logan nodded again and held his arms back out for his Teddy. Emmett handed him back to Logan and they went back to looking out the window.

Emmett turned to me and smiled again. "How're you?" I shrugged, keeping my eyes on the road in front of me. "I'm good thanks. And you?"

"I'm good. Slept in this morning, which was nice. I can't remember the last time I was able to do that. My job doesn't really allow for such things. It was nice though, I went for a run this morning a little before you guys came. It's beautiful here."

I nodded, agreeing. "It really is, especially if you go high enough up the mountains."

"Maybe you could show me sometime?" He hinted.

"Yeah, sure. That'd be nice." I answered without thinking. My eyes widened after I realized what I had said. But then I thought about it and I realized that it _would_ be nice to get to know Emmett better as a friend and spend some more time with him.

Fifteen minutes later I pulled into the diner's parking lot. After I had agreed to take Emmett up to the mountains sometime we had lapsed into easy conversation, Emmett asking more about Forks and if there was any place worth seeing or eating at. I told him about my favorite restaurant and about the museum on the Reservation that Jake and his dad lived on and the movie theater in Port Angeles that usually had at least one good movie playing at any time.

"… And there's a bookstore in Port Angeles as well. It's way better than the one here, but I like the one here if I ever want new book on short notice. But the one in Port Angeles is stocked much better and they have a much wider selection in all of the genres. The workers there are really helpful as well. There's this one man, his name's Morgan, and I'll admit that he's a little strange, but he gives the best recommendations. One time…" I blushed as I realized I was babbling. "Sorry." I muttered, and glanced at Emmett out of the corner of my eye.

"You like to read I take it." He commented teasingly. I nodded.

"Yeah. Ever since I was a kid."

"What's your favorite genre?" I was surprised that he actually seemed genuinely interested. Not even Jake really understood my love of reading.

"I like historical fiction. But I think my favorites are the classics. Especially Wuthering Heights, Gulliver's Travels, and Pride and Prejudice."

Emmett nodded. "I read Pride and Prejudice for school a while ago. I've never been a big reader though. I was always out playing sports."

"So you were a Jock in high school?" I could definitely see that, but I didn't think that he was the stereotypical Jock. There seemed to be too much intelligence lurking around Emmett for him to have been a Jock.

"I guess, but not in the way you think. I did play a lot of sports but my parents were very adamant about my school work coming before sports ever did. They made sure I realized that if there was ever a time when my grades were suffering then I would be taken out of whatever sport I was in and I would be spending more time after school on my homework and studying. I played baseball, hockey, and football. But football's always been my favorite." I nodded, impressed.

The last couple of minutes of our drive to the diner were quite as we mulled over what the other had said. I got out first and went over to Logan to find that Emmett had already unbuckled him.

Logan grabbed onto my hand as soon as he exited the car, Teddy clutched in his other hand and Emmett walked on my other side after donning a baseball hat that he wore low on his forehead, covering his features.

Emmett held the door open for us as we filed in. We were about to sit down at a booth by the windows when Emmett stopped me. "Do you think we might be able to sit over there?" He asked, pointing to a booth that was almost hidden in a corner. "Sure," I responded. Emmett led the way and sat down with his back facing the door, and I sat next to him after Logan insisted on sharing that he and Teddy needed their own space.

When Emmett didn't take off his hat I frowned slightly, not used to it. Dad, Jake, and Phil always took their hats off when they were inside. I shrugged my shoulders. I had only just met Emmett, for all I knew this wasn't strange for him at all.

Not five minutes later, a waitress, whose face was covered with make-up that made her look like a clown and fake nails that looked more like talons, came over and handed us some menus, taking our drink order as she practically undressed Emmett with her eyes. Emmett kept his head down, not looking the waitress in the face or paying her any attention as he ordered his glass of Orange Juice and water. "You okay?" I asked him, wondering what had happened in the few short minutes since we got out of the truck to have him acting so strangely. I placed my hand on his forearm and he looked up at me and attempted to smile.

"Yeah. I'm good. Why wouldn't I be?" I studied his face for a moment, hoping to see something that would clue me in to what was bothering him.

It took me a moment but then I saw it in his eyes, they were somber; as if he was worried something bad might happen. "So what do you think you're going to get Logan?" He asked, turning away from me as he looked at Logan who was coloring a picture on the Kid's Menu he was given with some crayons that were in a cup on the table.

"Chocomo Chip panycakes," he replied, not pausing in his coloring.

"It's what he always gets," I supplied. "He never even looks at the menu." Emmett smiled, starting to relax back into the person who I had started to get to know and not the uptight and anxious person who had just made an appearance.

"What are you going to get?" I looked over the menu that I practically had memorized, and thought over what I wanted.

"I think I might go with French Toast with a side of bacon today. What about you?"

"I was thinking about maybe some eggs, toast, hash browns, and sausage. Maybe some pancakes too, not sure though." My eyes were wide as he recited what he was going to get, Logan even looked up from the balloon that he was coloring to gape at Emmett. I shouldn't have been surprised though, I had seen how much he had eaten the night before and he was a bigger man so it was only natural that he would eat more.

The waitress came over and was practically fawning over Emmett, placing her hand on his shoulder and toying with the collar of his shirt, as she asked him what he was going to order. Once again he paid her no attention, except to lean closer to me in hopes of freeing himself from her clutches, as he keep his eyes on Logan who was playing with Teddy by showing him how to write his name.

The woman wouldn't take a hint though as she leaned over the table, her low-cut shirt showing off her cleavage, to grab the menu from in front of me.

"Do you mind?" Emmett growled, standing up and towering over the woman. "There's a kid here and he doesn't need to be seeing what you've so carelessly been showing. Not that I'm interested at all, which you would have understood if you had any brain cells in that head of yours!" The waitress stood there, frozen. Emmett stormed off and I watched as he started talking to the older woman who was manning the cash register.

The woman nodded and looked over to the waitress who was still frozen in shock by our table. Emmett came back over with the older woman and different waiter in tow. The older woman looked at our waitress crossly and motioned for her to meet her in the kitchen before she turned to us.

"I'm sorry about what happened with your former waitress; David will be your server and your meal's on the house. Again, I'm terribly sorry." David smiled warmly at us as the older woman departed.

"Good morning. Are you ready to order?" I looked up at Emmett disbelievingly, wondering why that had set him off so. He was a good looking man, he had to have had women throwing themselves at him all the time, not that I condoned the behavior, but shouldn't he have been used to it by now.

"Yes, thank you." I said, shaking myself out of my stupor and answering the waiter. I ordered for myself and Logan, mulling things over in my head as Emmett recited his massive order.

"Mommy?" Logan spoke up after the waiter left with a promise that our food would be out shortly.

"Yeah babe?"

"Why was that lady doin' that stuff to Emmy? It lookted weird."

_Oh boy…_

"Remember how we talked about everybody being different?" I started, hoping that my watered-down explanation would be enough to satisfy his curiosity. Logan nodded. "And how a lot of the kids in your class are different from you, like some of them are louder or sillier than you, but that's how they express themselves. Well, that was how that woman expresses herself." Logan looked at me for a minute and I thought that he was about to challenge my answer when he shrugged and then went back to his coloring.

I sighed in relief and turned to look at Emmett again. "You alright?" He still looked a little tense. Emmett turned and looked at me with tired eyes. Something told me that it didn't have to do with being physically tired.

"Yeah. Sorry 'bout that." I shrugged.

"It wasn't your fault. The way the Manager talked, I'm going to guess that this wasn't the first time something like that has happened with her." Emmett nodded mutely and drank some of his water. "Hey," I said, resting a hand on his forearm. "You sure you're okay?" Emmett looked down at my hand, then up at me.

"Yeah. I'm sure." I was dubious, but decided to just drop it and let him figure things out for himself. Sometimes that worked out best. I looked up when I saw our waiter come with our food, and moved my hand from Emmett's forearm, telling Logan that he needed to put his coloring stuff off to the side because breakfast was here.

Now that Logan was fully awake, his eyes opened in delight as he saw his Chocolate chip pancakes coming. David gave us our food, and after moving things around, we were actually able to fit all of Emmett's meal in front of him. We all dug in and relative silence overcame our table. Just as I was about to take a bite, a hand touched my arm that was resting in my lap.

I tensed at the foreign touch. Then looked over at Emmett to find him still engrossed in his meal, he looked up when he felt my gaze and smiled awkwardly. I had a feeling that while he looked like he was just enjoying his Sunday breakfast, he was really contemplating a lot. I could practically see the wheels of his brain turning consistently.

Moving my arm, I dislodged Emmett's hand and instead held his bigger hand in my smaller one. I smiled reassuringly at him and he smiled back as well, this time with more freeness in his eyes. I guess I had done something right.

We finished our meal with our hands entangled under the table as Logan filled Emmett in on what he had done in Preschool this past week.

"Mommy, are we going to see Gampa Chawie today?" I finished buckling him in and got into the truck besides Emmett.

"We weren't going to. But I'm sure Grandpa wouldn't mind if we called to see if you could stay with him for a while." I hesitated in turning on the truck, wanting to wait until I knew what are plans were going to be before I pulled out.

"Yeah!" He exclaimed eagerly. I slipped my phone out of my pocket and dialed my Dad's number as I heard Logan talking to Emmett in the background. "And Gampa Chawie is a Powice Offica. He's the Chief of Powice." The pride that I heard in Logan's voice made me smile.

"Hello." A female voice answered.

"Hi Sue. How are you?" I wasn't surprised when Sue Clearwater answered. Her husband, a good friend of my Dad's, had passed away three years ago and Dad had been there for Sue and her two children, Leah and Seth. About eight months ago, they started seeing each other more frequently and they were still going strong.

When Logan was first born, my Mom and Phil moved into Port Angeles to be closer so they could help out with Logan. And then Renee started watching Logan while I was working. Things had been kind of tense between Renee, Phil, and Charlie even though I know they tried not to make it that way. So when Logan started Preschool, Renee and Phil moved to Seattle so that they were still close enough in case of an emergency, but things weren't so strained anymore.

"Oh, Bella! I'm doing just fine, how are you?"

"I'm doing pretty good. Is my Dad there?"

"Yes, he's watching a baseball game. Do you want to talk to him?"

"Yeah. Logan's interested in coming over for a little bit but I didn't know if Dad had any plans."

Sue scoffed. "Bella, you know that your father doesn't care if you call or not before coming over. He loves you and Logan so much. But I'm assuming you still want to talk to him?"

"Yes please. Tell Leah and Seth I say 'Hi'."

"I will Bella. I imagine I'll be seeing you in a while. I'll get Charlie now, just a minute." The line went silent and heard Logan telling Emmett more about Charlie, Sue, Renee, and Phil. then I heard some shuffling around before Charlie picked up the phone.

"Bells?"

"Hey Dad. How're you doing?"

"Pretty good. I hear that Logan's lookin' to come over."

"Yeah. I didn't know if you had anything you were planning on doing today though."

"Nope. Sue and Iare just watching a baseball game."

"Okay. Well I'll be by to drop Logan off in about twenty minutes."

"You're not staying?"

"I'm going to hang out with a friend." _Please don't ask. Please don't ask._ I pleaded internally, not wanting him to be bugging me about Emmett.

"I thought that Alice didn't get back from her honeymoon until next Friday." _How did he know that?_

"She doesn't. This is a guy friend."

"And will I be meeting this guy friend?" I could practically see him eyeing his gun belt that hung by the front door.

"Dad!" I exclaimed, exasperated. "I'm not a teenager anymore. I can take care of myself and he's just a friend dad. "

He grumbled incoherently for a moment then, "You still got that can of Pepper Spray?" I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"Yes Dad. I still have the Pepper Spray." I said, indulging him.

"Alright. I still want to meet this guy friend Bells."

"I'm not going to do anything stupid again Dad." I huffed out, not believing him.

"And I'm not saying that you're going to." He countered. "I just don't want you and Logan to get hurt." I heaved a sigh.

"I know Dad. Sorry. I love you."

"I love you too Bells. See you in a bit."

I hung up the phone and turned to Logan. "We're heading to Grandpa's. And Miss Sue is there too." Logan's eyes widened.

"Yay! Maybe we can make cookies 'gen. Grandpa always eatses 'em right when they come out of the oven though. Miss Sue scoldses him though and says that he needs to wait for them to cool off. I always wait." He said matter-of-factly. "Are you going to come in and see Grandpa and Miss Sue Emmy?"

"Oh. Um…" Emmett looked to me.

"You don't have to." I assured him. "It'll only take me a minute to drop Logan off then I can drive you back home until Jake calls or we can hang out until he does. Whatever you want." Logan looked upset that he wasn't going to be able to introduce his new friend to Charlie and Sue.

"I'd love to meet your Grandpa and Miss Sue Logan. If that's okay with your Mom." My eyes widened in surprise and my mouth fell open a bit.

Emmett Cullen was a very strange man.

I don't think he realized what he was getting himself into. Even if we weren't in a romantic relationship, my Dad was fiercely protective of Logan and I, something I was just reminded of, and no other guy that I knew would willing go to meet a woman's Police Officer father and his girlfriend just to appease a five year old boy.

"If you're sure Emmett." He nodded his consent before I could get another word in. I pulled out of the parking lot and started driving to Charlie's, still trying to understand why Emmett was so interested in meeting my family. I suppose it was part of him just being Emmett. I never hung out with many men, but I knew that Emmett wasn't acting like a lot of other men.

Pushing those thoughts away, I instead listened to Logan tell Emmett more about Charlie and Miss Sue.

As we got closer and closer to my Dad's house, Logan started to become more impatient, dancing around in his seat and asking every two minutes if we were there yet. I couldn't help the wide grin that broke out over my face. Logan didn't normally get this excited over things, so whenever he would get this excited, it always made me smile.

"Yeah baby. We're going to be there soon. You excited to see Grandpa and Miss Sue?"

"Yeah!" He exclaimed, going on to continue telling Emmett about his most recent fishing excursion with Grandpa and about how much Grandpa love the Seattle Seahaws.

When we reached Charlie's, Logan hurriedly undid his seatbelt and was about to jump out of the car when Emmett grabbed his waist and held onto him tightly. Before I could admonish my son, Emmett turned him so that they were face-to-face. "You need to be more careful big guy. Made sure you wait for Mommy or someone else to help you get down from the truck."

"But I want to go see Grandpa." Logan protested.

"I now you do, and that's great, but what would've happened if you fell down? It's a ways down to the ground from here and you could've gotten hurt. We don't want that, do we?" Logan shook his head somberly. "Alright, so we know to be more careful now, right?"

"Yeah, Emmy. I'll be more careful." He waited a minute. "So can we go see Grandpa now?" Emmett smiled and nodded his head and Logan became a big bubble of happiness again, scrambling around in Emmett's tight embrace, trying to get loose. But Emmett continued to hold onto him tightly, not letting him go until they were safely on the ground. I sat in the truck for a minute in amazement.

Logan ran into my childhood house, leaving the door wide open behind him. Emmett waited for me by the hood of the truck though, a questioning look on his face. I smiled a reassurance and turned the car off and made my way over to him.

"Everything okay?" He questioned as we started walking up the walkway.

"Yeah. Everything's perfect. Thanks for what you did with Logan by the way. I really appreciate it. Sometimes he goes a little overboard when he gets excited about something." Emmett shrugged, his hands shoved deep in the depths of his pockets.

"It's no problem, really. I like Logan. He's a good kid." Emmett ushered me into the house and closed the door behind him.

We were greeted with the sight of my Dad and Sue giving Logan an abundance of hugs and kisses. When my Dad heard us come in he looked, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of Emmett by my side. As Sue continued to dote on Logan, my Dad approached us and wrapped me in his embrace, placing a kiss to my temple.

"Hi Dad. How're you?"

"Good," he said gruffly. "Who's your friend?" Charlie questioned, nodding to Emmett.

"Emmett Cullen sir." Emmett responded, holding out his hand. Charlie's eyes narrowed ever more. Shaking my head in disbelief of the male fender, I left them to their manly greetings and went over to see Sue.

"Oh Bella!" She exclaimed and embraced me. "Who's your friend?"

"His name's Emmett! But he's _my_ Emmy." Logan interjected. "And we had dinner last night, and breakfast this morning. And I made a piture for Emmy." Sue raised an eyebrow in my direction but thankfully she didn't question anymore. "Can we make some cookies now Miss Sue?"

"Of course Munchkin. What kind are we going to make today? Chocolate Chip, Sugar, or Oatmeal Rasin?" Logan looked thoughtful for a minute, then scurried out of the room only to return a moment later with a big smile on his face. "Can we make Sugar cookies? Emmy says they're his favorite."

"Sounds good to me. Why don't we go get started." Logan nodded his head and was about to go into the kitchen, but he came scurrying back to me and wrapped his arms around my legs.

"Love you Mommy." I smiled and dropped down to his level and kissed his forehead.

"Love you too Pumkin. I'll see you in a bit. Call when you're ready to be picked up, okay?"

"'Kay," then he ran back out of the room to where I could hear my Dad and Emmett talking, but about what I wasn't sure. Sue opened her mouth to question me, but before she could Logan bounded back into the room. "Ready Miss Sue?"

"Yep." Sue held out her hand, which Logan took and they left the room. I made my way back to where my father and Emmett were talking, both of them silencing and turning to look at me as I entered.

"Hey. You ready?" I hoped that Charlie hadn't said anything overly fatherly.

"Yeah, sure." Emmett replied, not sounding too put-out. I gave Charlie another hug and Emmett and I walked out of the house, heading back to my truck.

"What'd you and my Dad talk about?"

"Just guy stuff." Oh, boy. That couldn't bode well.

"You can put Logan's car seat in the back if you want. That way you have more room." Emmett smiled his thanks and took the seat out, carefully putting it in the bed and then got it. "So what do you want to do? Jake probably won't call for another few hours or so. I could take you back to your place and I'll call you when Jake calls. Or I could take you somewhere else you need or want to go. It's entirely up to you." Emmett was quiet for a minute.

"Would it be too forward to say that I want to spend time with you?" My gaze snapped to his and I searched his face with my eyes, wondering why he was so interested in me. I was a single mother of a five year old with tons of extra baggage. He was drop dead gorgeous man who had women fawning over his every move. But when he could have any woman he wanted, he was wanting to be with me.

"I don't know if it'd be a good idea for us to be anything more than friends Emmett. You're a really nice guy, and I think we could be good friends, but you like halfway across the country and something tells me that you're not planning on staying here for very long. I can't parade men in and out of Logan's life. I refuse to. He needs stability. And he likes you so much already, if it didn't work out between us he'd be heartbroken." Emmett nodded slowly and looked out the window.

I swallowed shakily, feeling the tears start to collect in my eyes. I hadn't known Emmett for very long at all, but he was a truly remarkable man. And even if nothing was going to blossom between us, it still hurt to let him go. I looked back to the house to find Charlie inconspicuously looking at us through the curtains.

Sighing in frustration at my family's inability to leave me alone sometimes, I put the truck into gear and pulled out of the drive.

"Is there any way I'd be able to change your mind?" His voice was quiet and pleading.

"I don't know. I'm really sorry. You're a great guy. And I know that one day you're going to make some woman very happy and lucky. I just don't think that I'm that woman."

He nodded his head sullenly. "Why don't you just take me back to my place."

The ride back was deathly silent and it took all of my willpower not to let my tears overflow.

"I really am sorry Emmett." I whispered as he got out.

"I know," he replied just as quietly before he shut the door. I pulled out of his drive and a let the tears fall freely. My fingers itched to call Alice; she would know what to do. She always knew what to do. But I couldn't bug her on her honeymoon. I wouldn't.

When I got back home, shakily let myself in. I was planning to go get my Peanut Butter and Fudge ice cream from the freezer and indulging in eating the rest of it. What I wasn't expecting, was to get bombarded by a tiny pixie who squeezed the life out of me.

"Alice," I squeaked, trying to get myself under control. "What're you doing here? You're supposed to be on your honeymoon still."

"Jasper had a patient emergency so we came back early. And since he's busy, I decided to come see you and my amazing little godson." She disentangled herself from me and looked up into my face, her eyes narrowing at my bloodshot eyes.

"Bells. What's wrong? Is Logan hurt? Your Dad? Mom?" She asked, her voice getting frantic.

"No Alice. Everyone's fine. Nothing's wrong."

"Isabella Marie Swan! How many times do I have to tell you not to lie to me about things? I'm your friend. You call tell me anything. What's wrong?"

I smiled weakly at her. "I don't know what to do Ali." Alice led me to the couch, holding me in her arms as we sat down.

"'Bout what?" she asked quietly.

"Yesterday Logan and I were at a bookstore and we met this guy." After I said that I could practically feel the giddiness coming off of Alice, but thankfully she kept silent, letting me get my story out. "And after he had some car trouble, he came over here for dinner while he waited for Jake to get back with us about his car. But the car isn't going to get finished until lunchtime today. So we went out to breakfast and then dropped Logan off at my Dad's… And when I asked him where he wanted me to take him, he said that he wanted to spend time with me. He wants a relationship Alice. But I don't know if I can do that with Logan.

"He's such a great guy. He's amazing with Logan, and Logan really likes him. But he lives in Chicago. And he's crazy hot and I'm worried that being with me is going to just be a novelty. I love Logan with all my heart and soul, but I won't let something like what happened in college happen to me again. I won't be used. He could have any woman Alice, I'm positive. I don't know what to do; I've never been this confused about a guy since Edward."

"What's his name?"

"Emmett Cullen."

I felt Alice stiffen next to me. "Are you sure Bella?"

My brow furrowed in confusion. "Unless he lied to me. Why?"

"Because Emmett Cullen is the star quarterback for the Chicago Bears football team." I shook my head vehemently.

"You're wrong Alice. There has to be some mistake. He wouldn't lie to me like that. He wouldn't." The conviction in my words died out as I started to think about it more. I really had no idea who this man was. For all I knew, he could've been a mass murderer. My heart sank.

I tore myself out of Alice's grasp as ran upstairs to my room, intent on seeing this for myself. I heard Alice come after me, but I didn't answer to her calls. Impatiently, I started my laptop and opened an Internet browser as quickly as possible and typed in _Emmett Cullen_.

Tons of articles popped up, but only the first one caught my eye. It was of Emmett and me leaving the dinner this morning, holding hands. Thankfully Logan wasn't in the picture and you couldn't see my entire face. But the headline drew tears to my eyes.

**Cullen Strikes Again!**

I heard Alice's sharp intake of breath and my tears started all over again. I went back to the previous page and saw pictures of Emmett fawning over very beautiful, very scantily clad women. And each picture held a different woman. Alice closed the browser and shutdown my computer. She helped me stand up and guided me over to the bed where she situated us under the blanket, holding me tight in her arms.

"I'm so sorry Bells. I really am."

"I can't believe he would do that to me. He seemed like such a nice guy. Nothing like Edward. Maybe I should just give up on guys Ali. It never seems to work out."

"Don't say that Bells." She chided me. "I know that this really sucks right now. And as soon as I know you're feeling better, I'm going to go beat this guy up. Famous football player or not. No one messes with my bestie like this and gets away with it. But there are good guys out there Bells. You just have to be patient enough to find him. Promise me you won't give up though Bella. If anyone deserves happiness, it's you."

"Thanks for being here Alice. I really appreciate it."

She scoffed. "As if I'd be anywhere else. I got your back girl, just like you've got mine. I'm not gonna let you down. You can count on that." I stayed silent for a minute, knowing what needed to be down but not wanting to do it.

"I need to call him."

"Why?" Alice exclaimed. "You don't own him anything Bella. He's the one who lied to you!"

"No, I know. I need to tell him to leave Logan and I alone though. And that I'll see if Jake can drop off his car."

"Maybe I should do that for you Bells. That way you won't have to talk to him."

I shook my head resolutely. "He doesn't even know you Alice. It would be better coming from me. I need to do this."

"If you're sure…" Alice bit her lip.

"I'm sure. I wouldn't mind some moral support though. I don't think he's going to just let this go but I really don't want to talk to him anymore than necessary." I pulled out my phone and with unsteady fingers I found his number.

Alice's grabbed my free hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Taking a deep breath, I pressed the _Call_ button and waited anxiously as his phone rang. Three rings later, I heard his voice on the other line.

"Hello?"

"It's Bella, Emmett. I just wanted to ask you to find some other way to get your car from Jake's. I'm sorry. And I need you to not call or come by the house anymore."

"Whoa! Bella what's going on? Have you been crying?" Damn it! I had tried to keep my voice from cracking.

"What's going on Emmett? What's going on is that you lied to me! You used me! I'm not just another notch on your, or anyone else's for that matter, bedpost. Did you think I wouldn't find out? I'm not stupid. Don't try to contact me anymore. I want you to stay away from me and my son." Emmett tried to protest but I hung up on him and turned my phone off, ignoring his incoming call.

"Good job Bells. I'm proud of you. You deserve so much more. Screw him and his stupid footballness." I froze.

"Oh my god." They wouldn't. Would they? No. But… The way they looked at him. They had to have known. They couldn't not have known with how much they watched all the different games.

"What Bella? What's wrong?"

"My Dad and Jake. They saw him. They knew who he was but they didn't tell me. They let him lie to me!" I leaned over to my bedside table and grabbed for the house phone there. I dialed the phone number of whom I had a bone to pick with.

"Black Mechanics, how can I help you?"

"How could you do that to me Jacob Black? How could you not tell me when you know that I have trust issues? Whatever even made you think that that was even moderately okay?"  
>"Whoa, whoa there Bells. What're you talking about?"<p>

"Emmett Cullen, Jacob. The famous football player." The line went quiet.

"He told me he was going to tell you Bells, I swear. Because if he wasn't, there was no way I wasn't going to tell you. I know you deserved to know, but he was insistent on telling you on his own time. I tried to tell him that you wouldn't take it well but he wouldn't listen." I heard him sigh and a door close. "How'd you find out anyway? 'Cause I'm assuming it wasn't from him."

"From a fucking magazine Jacob Black. A headline on the Internet. That's how I found out that he was using me. Not from my best friend and not from my father. From the fucking _Internet_!"

"What do you mean 'using you' Bells? He told me that he just wanted to get to know you better. That his intentions were everything but bad. If that bastard hurt you Bells, tell me and I'll beat him up for you."

"Oh that's rich Jacob. Come and defend me _after_ I got hurt when you could've prevented it in the first place_. 'Good intentions'?_ I know you know his reputation Jacob, watching all those football games that you do, what made you think that I would be any different for him? How could you do this to me? But more importantly, how could you do this to Logan? Do you know how much my son loves him already? How do you think this'll affect him? If you would've told me in the first place who he was, we wouldn't be having this issue now would we?"

I took a calming breath after my very satisfying rant. "I told him to find some other way to pick up his car, so I assume you'll be hearing from him soon enough. I'll talk to you later." I said, and hung up.

"I'm proud of you for standing up for yourself Bells. You did good." Alice gave me a reassuring hug and squeezed me tight.


	4. Wait! What?

**Chapter Four**

**Emmett's POV**

**Chapter Title: Wait! What?**

**Day: Sunday, Week One – Friday, Week One**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot**

**Story Recommendations:**

If We Ever Meet Again by: pattyrose (Twilight/Work in Progress)

Italian's Lust by: TwiggyDee (Harry Potter/Work in Progress)

My brows furrowed as I tried to understand what had just happened between Bella and I. She told me to find some other way to get my car back from Jake, that I remember. And then she said something about not calling her or going to their house anymore… and after those words, my brain just shut down. My eyes flew open in realization and I bolted up from my laying down positing on the couch, not caring that the remote fell to the floor and I almost knocked over my orange juice. She told me never to call her again, to leave her and Logan alone for good. Had I really been too forward earlier that I scared her off?

Right when I met Bella, I knew that she wasn't like the other girls that I dated in the past. She had brains, a personality, she wouldn't just jump into bed with some random stranger, and she would want to have an actual relationship, not just fuck buddies. But I didn't think that I'd been too forward with her, but maybe I had been…

As I concentrated on trying to figure what else she'd said to me, I paced back and forth in the living room continuously calling her phone only for it to go straight to voicemail. _Damn it, she turned her phone off. _I ran my hand exasperatedly through my hair as some random words floated back to me: lied, used, notch, bedpost…

"Fuck," I cursed under my breath. Bella had found out who I was, who I _really_ was. But how'd she find out? I knew she didn't watch football, and I didn't think Jacob or her Dad would've volunteered the information, they'd both told me that they wouldn't say anything as long as I told her soon, and they stuck me as men who kept their word. And I _did_ intend to tell her.

_The Internet maybe?_ I thought, trying to come up with more ideas as to how exactly Bella found out. _Fuck!_ That had to be it, which meant that she'd seen all of the pictures of me with other women. I wasn't a man whore per say, but I did enjoy the company of many beautiful women. Often times going to events with them where many pictures were taken. But that wasn't me anymore. Now I wanted to try out a more committed relationship. I wanted that to try it with Bella. The problem was, was that now she thinks that I was using her just to get into her pants. And now she wasn't answering her phone and she didn't want to see me, so I couldn't explain to her what had happened.

_Double Fuck!_

I tried calling her once more, this time leaving her a voicemail begging her to let me explain and to give me another chance. I flopped back onto the couch and flipped through my contacts, trying to find the one person who would give me exactly what I needed, when I needed it: my Momma.

The phone rang three times before somebody picked up. "What do you want?" My sister's voice asked.

"Well good day to you too? What crawled up your ass and died?" Rosie and I had the classic sibling love/hate relationship, although nowadays it was normally love, apparently that was a hate time.

"You, Emmett. That's what pissed me off. You said that you were done with the seeing of multiple women thing. And now you've got a new one. If you're not ready to settle down Emmett, that's fine, but then don't go spouting lies about being down with all that. You know I don't like being lied to."

My brows furrowed in confusion. "What're you talking about Rose? I haven't been with anyone short term in months."

"Oh really? Then who's that woman with you in the newest picture online?" My heart started pounding in my ears, hoping that what I thought happened, really didn't happen, but I knew that it had. Bella must've looked me up online, why I don't know, and a picture of us must've popped up with one of the journalists' horrible headlines that made everything seem much worse.

"Hold on." I told my sister, as I bounded up the stairs into my room where my computer was on the bed. I booted it up and waited impatiently for it to start up, my knee bouncing up and down and making the computer unsettle from my lap. I forced my knee to be still, and my nervous energy then transferred into my finger, tapping incessantly on the keyboard. "How bad is it?" I asked, bringing my phone back up to my ear.

"Not horrible, I guess. They have your full face, but only part of hers. And the article doesn't have any names. Mainly it's just speculation about the upcoming season and how you're going to play. And it talked about your history with women." I quickly typed my name into the Google search bar and waited with baited breath while the page loaded.

"Is there a young boy in the picture?" I inquired, knowing that if Logan was in that picture, I'd never forgive myself.

"A little boy? Why on earth would there be a boy in the picture?"

"Just answer the damn question Rosalie!" I shouted into the phone, angry with my sister for not answering my question when I knew that she could tell it was important that I knew the answer.

"Don't you _dare_ talk to me like that Emmett Matthew Cullen!" I rolled my eyes at Rose and sighed in frustration, forcing myself to calm down so that I could just get the fricken' answer from Rose. Never again would I take high speed Internet for granted.

"Please just tell me Rose. The Internet here sucks and is taking forever. This is important. Is there a little boy in the picture or not?"

The line was quiet for a minute, and I knew that Rose was making me pay for raising my voice to her. Then, "No, there's no little boy in the picture. Now are you gonna tell me what this is all about?" My shoulders sagged in relief and my heart and head felt slightly lighter.

"I can't right now Rosie. Is Mom there? I really need to talk to her." I said, ignoring her question as I perused the page that had finally fully loaded.

"Yeah, she's here. Is everything okay Emmett? And don't you dare lie to me." Her voice was soft and concerned, but quickly grew stern as she tried to ascertain what was going on that had me so on edge.

"Yeah, everything's fine. Or it's going to be at least. Can I talk to Mom now?" My eyes scanned the article quickly, feeling immense relief that it wasn't as bad as it could've been. I was thanking my lucky stars that you could only see part of Bella and Logan wasn't there at all and that their names weren't mentioned either. It didn't matter that Rose had already assured me of these things; I needed to see if for myself, to see what Bella saw.

"Yeah, just a minute." Rose paused. "You know you can talk to me, right Emmett?" I looked up from my computer screen, appreciating Rose's words even though she'd already said them many times.

"Yeah Rose, I know." My voice softening as well. "Love ya."

"Love you too, ya big goof." I smiled, my love for my sister becoming even greater.

Much like Rose had, Mom cut to the chase right away as well. "Emmett Cullen, I've let you do your own thing for a while now, but I know that your father and I raised you to treat women better than you have been. I'm not saying that you beat on them or anything of the sort. But women deserve more respect and I think you've been taking them for granted for some time now."

"Mom, Mom, wait just a minute." I rolled my eyes and shook my head, wondering why it took me so long to find this stupid article, but everyone I seemed to care about found it first and were insulted about it before I could even clarify the details for them. "I'm going to gather that you've seen the article. But it's a lie Mom, I promise. I'm done seeing all the different women. I want to settle down. That wasn't a lie. The article got it wrong."

"You better not be lying to me." Mom warned.

"I'm not Momma, but I need your help. The woman in the picture, her name's Bella and I think I want to spend the rest of my life with her." I heard my mother's gasp and couldn't help but smile as realization overtook me. "She saw the article and she thinks that I used her, just like everyone else, and she won't even let me explain to her."

"Why don't you tell me about her, and I'll see if I can give you some insight into the wonders of a woman's mind." Her voice was gentler now and once again, I was thankful for what a great Mom I have.

"She's beautiful. But not just on the outside, on the inside too. And she has a little boy named Logan." I smiled wistfully, thinking of the first time I met him. "He's the sweetest, most amazing kid you could ever wish to meet. Bella always puts him before herself and she's crazy protective of him, but she does it in a way so that she's not overbearing. She's quiet but has a lot to say. When I asked about Logan's dad, she got really defensive…" I continued to tell Mom about Bella and Logan, not wanting to leave any details out in hope that she'd be able to help me more if she got a good feel for what type of person Bella was. When I finished, I heard what sounded like my Mom crying on the other end.

"Mom, what's wrong?" A watery laugh/sob came through the speaker.

"You found her Emmett. She's perfect for you, I just know it. Which is why you can't give up on her, even when things get tough. You have to work at a relationship. You're not always going to agree with what she says, and vice versa, but you can't just leave because of one disagreement."

"I know Mom. I want her and Logan in my life. I'm almost positive; I've never felt this way before." I heard Mom blow her nose and clear her throat before continuing.

"From what you've told me, it sounds like she's probably been hurt before. You said she got really defensive when it came to Logan's Dad, so I'm going to guess it has to do with him. If she had such a strong reaction to thinking that you were just using her, the father might've done that and she doesn't want to be put in that position again. Not that I can blame her.

"You said that she's really protective of Logan and she puts him first. She might try to use that as an excuse to try to protect herself and Logan. But you need to show her that you'd be a good role model for Logan and that you wouldn't intentionally hurt her."

"She's already said that she didn't think it'd be good to 'parade' men in front of Logan." I muttered.

"But the most important thing, Emmett, is that you need to be patient with her, when you do commit, she'll want to go slow and you'll need to respect her wishes and not push her too much, too fast. You need to be 110% willing to take on a long distance relationship. Its hard work and it takes a lot of communication between both parties."

"I know. I'm willing to put in the effort. I want this with her Mom. More than I've wanted anything else in my entire life. But how do I get her to hear me out?" I sat on my bed, and messed with the fringe on one of the blankets.

"You need to give her a couple days to cool off. Don't call her every minute and don't crowd her either. Call her once or twice though, just so she knows that you still care and that you're not going to give up. And when she does let you back in, take it for the treasure it is. I have a feeling that with her, you'll want to be as open as possible, especially after this incident."

"Yeah, I know better now. She had no idea who I was though Mom. I can't tell you how good it felt to have someone, besides family, talk to me like I'm a normal person. It was really refreshing and I guess I let that could my perspective on things. It's not going to happen again though."

Mom tsked. "Emmett, as hard as you try, you can't say that. Just like you can't say that you're not ever going to disagree with Bella. It's going to happen and you need to accept that."

"So you and Dad fight?" That, I couldn't see. My parents were the two most loving people I'd ever met. I wanted my marriage to be like theirs.

"Of course! When you were in high school, your father and I fought about how many sports you were doing and if it would affect your school work. About when you and Rose could go on a plane by yourself. We fought about when Rose could start dating and wearing makeup. You father wanted to wait until she was eighteen for both. I told him that it was ridiculous and if we made rules like that then she'd just go behind our backs. We finally consented that she could start wearing minimal makeup in eighth grade and she could start dating her Freshman year." I was flabbergasted.

"I don't remember you guys fighting at all though," I protested.

"And that's the key: not letting it affect the kids." I nodded, still trying to picture Mom and Dad fighting.

"How is the old man?"

"He's good. Worried sick about you knee and how it's going to hold up this season." Mom replied.

I stopped messing with the blanket, wondering why he hadn't said anything, voicing my question to Mom.

"That's another thing, not being too overbearing. He knows as a doctor that the doctors who fixed you up did their job the way they were supposed to, but as a father he will always worry. As do I. But we know that you love football a lot, so we support you and let you make your own decisions." Her voice grew serious. "But you make sure to tell us if it does start acting up."

"I know Mom. But I don't feel a thing. I'm good, I promise. What are you guys doing tonight?" I asked, needing to think about something else for a while and let my newly acquired knowledge sink into my brain a bit more.

"Oh, nothing much. Just visiting really. Rose brought her boyfriend over and we're meeting with him." My eyes narrowed.

"Of course she brings him over when I'm not there."

"Emmett, can you honestly blame her after what happened with Terry?" Mom asked humorously.

"Come on Mom, it was just I joke!" I insisted.

"You made the man pee himself Emmett," she replied dryly.

"Well it's most certainly not my fault he wasn't good enough for Rosie."

"Honestly Emmett, she can take care of herself. Or do you not remember when you were picking on her when you were in the seventh grade, and she in eleventh, and you were making fun of her so she used her Tae Kwan Do lessons on you?" I grumbled incoherently, remember that day perfectly.

"You never answered my question about him." I pointed out.

"He's nice enough, but I don't think Rose is a happy as she could be. I'm sorry to cut this short dear, but I've got to finish up dinner."

"Alight. Tell Dad I say 'Hi'."

"Will do. Stay safe. I love you."

"Love you too Mom. Bye."

"Bye." After I hung up, I lay down and thought about what my Mom had said. Wondering if what she had guessed was right.

I didn't understand how someone could only want Bella for one night. It seemed crazy when I couldn't seem to get enough of her. I turned my phone on high ringer just in case Bella decided she was going to call, and thought about what to do next.

Running a hand over my face, I stood up and decided to head back downstairs to see if the TV would be able to distract me at all.

Nothing.

Knowing nothing else would keep me entertained, I just lay there, staring blankly at the TV.

At some point in time I must've fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, I was being awoken by a knocking on the front door. Looking out the window, I saw that it was dark, making me even more confused as to why I had somebody knocking on my door. I went to answer it, only slightly surprised when I saw Jacob Black standing on my doorstep.

"Look, I was going to tell her about who I really am, I swear. I didn't just use her to try to get into her pants. I wouldn't do that to her." Jacob narrowed his eyes.

"Then why don't you explain to me how this happened." Moving out of the way, I ushered in.

"You want a beer?" I questioned, deciding that I might as well indulge once before the season started.

"Might as well." Jake came in and plopped down on the couch after closing the door behind him. After I handed him his beer, I sat down and thought about how best to explain what had happened to him.

"After we went out to breakfast and dropped Logan off at her Dad's, I asked Bella if she wanted to get to know me on a more person level and she balked. Which I was sad about, but understood. About five hours ago though, she called me and told me to find some other way to get my car and to leave her and Logan alone-"

"Which I have by the way." Jake interjected. "I brought it with me." I nodded my head in appreciation and thanked him before continuing with my story.

"I later found out that someone took a picture of us while we were eating breakfast and wrote an article about how I'd found another one night stand. I don't know who told her to look up my name," I looked pointedly at Jake, who shook his head. "But she did, and the article popped up. She thinks I used her." Jake winced and I knew that he knew why this was such a big deal for Bella. I scooted to the edge of my seat and looked at him intently over the coffee table.

"What happened?" I demanded.

"I don't know if I should say… It's not really my story to tell." I put my beer down, placed my elbows on my knees and rubbed my face in frustration until my face had to have been a bright redish/pink. When I looked back up, Jake was running a hand through his hair in clear indecision.

"Look, if I tell you, you can't tell Bells I told you. She'd skin me alive." I nodded my head, anxious to hear what had made Bella so cautious about a relationship with the opposite sex. Jake took another deep pull from his beer before he started.

"One thing you have to understand about Bella is that she's never really been popular with the guys. There was maybe one or two guys during high school that showed an interest, but for the most part they really just left her alone. So she was rather ignorant about guys and relationships in general.

"So when Bella was a sophomore in college, she went to this party. There was a guy there that she knew from one of her classes and she liked him, but he never really paid much attention to her except for a few glances and words here and there. But that night, he told her he loved her, he just didn't have the guts to go up and talk to her before. She believed him and after he had doted on her for the entire night, seeming like a perfect gentleman, they had sex.

"Bells thought he was being honest and she really liked the attention that he was giving her. It made her feel special and cherished. When she woke up the next morning, he was nowhere to be found. And when she confronted him about it, he denied it ever happening, claiming that he would never stood so low just to get laid. A month later, she found out she was pregnant with Logan."

My eyes were wide with disbelief and anger ran through my veins, my fingers itching to get ahold of this guy for hurting Bella so bad. "Damn it," I muttered.

"Yeah," Jake agreed. "So you can see why she's a little leery about relationships and why she's so mad at you."

Jake and I simultaneously took a drink from our beers. "Shit. If I had known…"

"Now just wait right there." Jake sat up straighter and looked me intently in the eye. "If you're going to try to get her to forgive you and start a relationship with her, then you need to understand something about Bella. She's not going to tell you everything right off the bat; you have to earn her trust. She won't put out on the first date. But most of all, she's independent. She won't let you loom over her shoulder every minute of every day and let you dictate her life. And sometimes you're going to need to give her space." I knew that things would be different with Bella than they had been with all the other women I'd been with. And I was willing to accept that, embrace it because that's what I was really looking forward to in a committed relationship.

"Do you think she'll listen after she cools off?" Jake took another sip of his beer and thought carefully.

"I think," he started slowly, thinking about his words before saying them. "That after she's cooled off a little bit, she might be willing to hear you out, but she might not let you back into her life. She'll do whatever she can to protect herself and Logan."

I hated and loved that. I hated it because she would be stubborn, even when she knew that I wouldn't hurt her and things would be good between us. I hated it because it meant that she'd been hurt, bad. I hated it because now Bella wasn't able to life her life to its fullest because of some dumbass. I hated it because it meant that Bella was holding back. But I loved it because it meant that she was cautious. I loved it because was fiercely protective over those she loved. And I loved it because she knew she deserved the best.

"What types of things does she like?" I wasn't intending to bribe her with things; I knew she wouldn't go for that. But I wanted to show her that I wanted to give her the world, or whatever else she wanted

Jake snorted and shook his head in disbelief. "That's another thing. You won't be able to buy Bella's affection. She doesn't like getting gifts all that much. And she doesn't like overly expensive stuff either. Bells likes things that actually mean something."

As I took this information in, I though back to the time I'd been in her house and truck, trying to remember if I'd seen anything that could give me a clue as to what she liked. She mentioned cooking. She loved reading. She had lotion in the kitchen, coco butter if I remembered correctly. And then there'd been a French book on her coffee table.

I smiled to myself as a plan began to form in my mind. "Thanks Jake. I really appreciate it." Jake shrugged and set his half empty bottle on the table.

"Just make sure you don't make a habit of fucking things up." I nodded in understanding. Jake stood, and I followed his lead. "I need to get going. Told my Dad I'd help him put up a shelf that I didn't get to yesterday." I eyed Jake with a critical eye.

"You gonna be okay to drive?" Jake waved off my concern.

"I'm good. Swear. Bells, Charlie, and my Dad would kill me if I drove drunk or even a little buzzed. I know my limits and I'm man enough to know when I need to ask for help." My respect for this man rising. "Why don't you come out and help me get your car down and then I'll be on my way." Nodding my head in agreement, I followed him outside, ignoring the bite of the wind against my arms and face. Jake and I worked quickly and efficiently as we took care of my car in little to no time at all. Before Jake left, we shook hands, effectively making peace with each other and then he headed out.

I headed back inside, making my way to the kitchen and deciding to heat up one of the pizzas I had bought, along with a whole bunch of other groceries, when I first got into town late Friday night. Turning of Sports Center to keep me somewhat occupied, as I waited for my dinner to cook.

Half an hour later, I was eating my pizza as I tuned the commentators out and finalized my plans for Bella.

That night, as I climbed into bed, I had a smile on my face as I looked at the red and white shopping back that held the items I had purchased for Bella not long ago.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

Monday morning, I woke up feeling refreshed and excited. Looking over at the clock, I wasn't even upset that I had gotten up at six o'clock in the morning, of my own volition during a vacation. I scrambled out of bed and stripped out of my clothes as I headed to the shower, taking care of business as quickly as possible, eager to get started with my plans.

After I'd gotten ready for the day and had breakfast, I sat on the couch and pulled my phone out. I called her phone, and a smile bloomed across my face when it rang once and then went straight to voicemail.

"You know what to do at the beep." Bella's voice spoke, and I couldn't help but smile at the sound of her voice.

"Hey Bella, it's me Emmett. I just wanted to tell you that I hope you have a good day. Tell Logan I say 'Hi', and call me if you need anything. Bye." Regretfully, I hung up the phone. Wanting to talk into it for hours, even if I was just babbling nonsense, it would be better than these short, 'proper' phone calls that Mom said would help. I loved my Momma. But right now, her advice was making me irate that I couldn't talk to Bella more, even though I knew Bella probably wouldn't listen. At least she had to listen to the voicemail, or risk getting a whole punch of irritating pop-ups.

Finished with the first part of my daily plan, I waited irascibly for eight o'clock to roll around. Since I had no idea where Bella worked, I figured that eight was about the time that everyone was already at work, if they weren't headed there.

Heading to the bag, I dug through it and decided what to give her first. Determining to give her cook book containing a vide arrangement of recipes as her first gift, I then decided what type of wrapping to use, wanting this to be as perfect as possible. Not being able to choose between the Cars wrapping paper or the one that said "You're a princess". I looked back and forth between both rolls and finally decided on the Princess one. Wrapping it carefully, just like Momma taught me, I covered the book with the decorative paper perfectly. Opting against a bow, I tucked the gift under my arm and headed out the door. As I made my way to the car, I hoped that my memory of how to get to Bella's would suffice, and I wouldn't get lost.

Thankfully, I pulled into Bella's empty drive without any issues. Leaving my car running, I placed it in park and looked wearily at the small, dark haired woman sitting in her car across the street, applying makeup. When she heard my car door slam shut on the otherwise quiet street, she looked up and narrowed her eyes when she saw me.

I smiled hesitantly and gave a small wave before going up to Bella's front porch to put the gift in her mailbox. Heading back to my car, I glanced at the woman who was still glaring at me, and left Bella's, heading into Port Angeles to find the bookstore that Bella had spoken so fondly of.

I found it with little trouble at all, and was pleasantly surprised when I walked out, the proud owner of ten new books, thanks to the lovely woman who owned the store. And all ten books just happened to be Bella's favorites. Apparently the owner knew Bella very well, seeing as she was a very frequent customer and they often had lengthy discussions about their favorite books and the newest one they had read or were reading.

I ate lunch at a nice Italian place across the street, thinking of Bella and Logan the entire time as I thumbed through the books a little. After finishing, I made my way home, sitting in comfortable silence and just mulling things over in my head.

When I walked through the front door, I kicked off my shoes, automatically heading to the couch where I took out what the bookstore lady had claimed was Bella's all-time favorite book, Wuthering Heights, and started reading. As six o'clock rolled around, I made four sandwiches, grabbed some chips and dip, and a big glass of milk. Settling down to eat, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed Bella's number again, leaving a similar voicemail to the one from this morning.

I stayed up till four in the morning, trying to finish Wuthering Heights, and fell asleep on the couch, too tired to carry myself upstairs.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

Tuesday morning found me up by six again, once more of my own free will. Sluggishly, I pulled myself off the couch and dragged myself upstairs to throw on some shorts, a t-shirt, and a sweater before slipping on my running shoes.

The shock of walking out into the freezing cold morning woke me up some, but my actual run woke me up even more. I don't really know how far I went, since I just chose a random path to follow, but it felt nice and refreshing nonetheless. When I got back home, I did a series of sit-ups, push-up, planks, and pull-ups before taking a quick shower.

When done with that, I made my way, with my phone in hand, down to the kitchen for some breakfast. As the eggs were cooking, I called Bella and left another voicemail, slightly depressed that she still was choosing not to talk to me.

With my hunger sated, I started to think about what Bella's next present would be. Fifteen minutes later, I decided on the lotion and started tastefully arranging the tissue paper around the lotion to keep it hidden.

With the bag in hand, I made my way to Bella's, frowning when I saw the same dark haired woman sitting in the same car, this time looking for someone. And something told me that someone was me. My first thought was that this was the person who had taken the picture of Bella and I at the diner, but I quickly dismissed this idea when she didn't hurry to snap a picture.

Giving the woman another small wave, I walked up Bella's empty drive and placed the gift on the top step, happy to see that the other gift was no longer in the mailbox. Heading back to my car, I drove away without looking at the woman again.

I called my Mom as I headed back home to check in with her. And when I got home, I fell asleep on the couch again. When I woke up, it was early to late evening and I was starving, so I quickly started cooking some pasta and munched on pretzels while I waited for my food to be done. After I finished eating, I couldn't go to sleep because of my lengthy nap, and so I started one of the other books that I'd purchased, Frankenstein, after I left Bella her nighttime voicemail. That night, I fell asleep with only thirty pages to go in the book.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

I greeted Wednesday morning, bright and early, at six o'clock again. My body begged me to go back to sleep, but I needed to call Bella and drop off her gift. Then I'd let myself sleep again.

After calling Bella, I made my way to her place and put the spa day gift card in her mailbox. Then I went home, ate some lunch, watched TV, did some exercises, took a shower, ate dinner, called Bella again, and then went to sleep.

Before I met Bella, this routine wouldn't have bothered me. But now it did. Big time. I wanted to do something more now. I wanted to help Logan if he had any homework after school, I wanted to make dinner for Bella after a stressful day at work. I wanted to read Logan bedtime stories and tuck him in. I wanted to see Bella and Logan every morning and night. But most of all, I just wanted to be there for them whenever they would need me.

But something told me that unless Bella forgave me, this would be the only routine that I'd follow for a very long time.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

Waking up at six was no longer a surprise as I climbed out of bed. As I took my shower, I wondered if my voicemails and thoughtful gifts were even helping or if she was just deleting the voicemails without listening to them and throwing away the gifts. I didn't expect my gifts and calls to make everything better, I knew I had to do that myself, but I had hoped that they had shown Bella that this wasn't just a fling for me. I wanted to get to know her on a whole different level.

I skipped breakfast, something I hadn't done since middle school, and put the already wrapped French language book and French tourist book into the passenger seat and made my way on the now familiar street to Bella's.

I knew that something was different right when Bella's house came into view. For one thing, the dark haired woman was nowhere in sight. And for another, Bella's beat up red truck was in her driveway, and she was raking leaves in her front yard with brutal, harsh sweeps.


	5. Second Chance

**Chapter Five**

**Bella's POV**

**Chapter Title: Second Chance**

**Day: Thursday, Week One**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations:**

Just Like You By: Irenella Courmett (Twilight/Completed)

Love Aboard the Priam By: Untamed Loner (Twilight/Completed)

I clean when I get nervous or I need to think. These past four day my house has never been cleaner. When I wasn't with Logan or at work, I was cleaning. I was all caught up with laundry, my kitchen and bathrooms were spotless, all Logan's toys were off the floor and his room was organized, all my papers were graded, my pantry was rearranged, my fridge cleaned and tidied, and my room was organized within an inch of its life.

Currently, I was wondering what Emmett Cullen's deal was. He tried to get away with using me, and then he goes and calls me two times a day, leaving sweet messages because I wouldn't pick up. And he would bring over a small, thoughtful gift, except yesterday's wasn't so small. Things that told me that he had paid attention to who I was and what I liked. It really seemed like he was sincere, but I didn't want to subject myself to the possibility of getting used again. And this time, I wouldn't be the only one getting hurt. I had to think about Logan before I made any decisions. He deserved stability and the best that I could offer. And I fully intended to do that.

I looked up when I heard a car coming up the road and froze when I recognized it was Emmett's car. Hoping that he'd just drive past, I went back to raking violently. When I heard the car turn off and a door slam shut, I closed my eyes in anxious anticipation about what was about to unfold.

Emmett walked towards me cautiously and stopped a couple feet away from me. "Hi," he said quietly. I finally looked up, and was slightly appalled by what I saw. No longer was Emmett the clean shaven, happy-go-lucky guy. Now he had a scruffy beard, which really didn't look good on him and dark bags under his eyes as if he hadn't been sleeping properly for a couple of days.

Awkwardly, he held out the wrapped boxes he held in his hands. I looked down at it angrily and then scowled at him. "You can't buy my affection." I snapped.

"I'm not trying to. I just want to get to know you better and be able to take care of you. Did you like the others?" He asked hopefully. I softened for a moment, wondering if the care and consideration I heard in his voice was made up. But then I remembered that he'd lied to me. Something that I couldn't, and wouldn't, stand or tolerate what-so-ever. And my frown returned.

"Why are you doing this? Why did you lie to me?" I asked in a meek whisper, unable to hide my hurt.

"I was going to tell you who I really am Bella, I swear. You have no idea how good it felt to be treated like a regular person though. Everyone, except my family, always can't get over the fact that I play football in the NFL. And I like that I have fans, I really do, but sometimes they don't realize what it's like because they're just too caught up in everything. You treated me like an actual everyday person, and I let that crowd my perspective. I want to get to know you better Bella, deeper." Emmett shook his head in shame.

"You hurt me Emmett. More than anyone's hurt me before." Edward's betrayal had really cut me down. He used me for sex and then left right after he'd gotten what he wanted. When I'd first seen Emmett, my first thoughts were to stay clear of him because he was beautiful, which he had to have known, and he'd have no trouble using me like Edward had done. But then I'd gotten to know Emmett a little bit more and he had seemed so genuine. So true and kind and honest.

And then I found out that he had lied to me. So even though he hadn't tied to get into my pants like Edward did, his betrayal still cut deep. In my mind, half-truths were just as bad, if not worse, than a full out lie because the person was purposely leaving out a piece of information.

Emmett took a couple of slow steps towards me and tentatively tucked a lock of my hair that had escaped my ponytail behind my ear.

"I know I upset you. I'm so deeply sorry for that. You have no idea how much I wish I could just go back in time right now and fix things. I'd tell you right off the bat who I was. I swear that I didn't do it intentionally Bella. I know that I probably don't deserve it in your mind, but please give me once more chance and if I screw up again, I'll leave you and Logan alone. But let me prove to you that I can be a good companion to you and a good role model for Logan. I've been with many women, but none of them have made me feel this way. Only you."

I listened intently to Emmett's words and watched his expressions and eyes. They showed pain and a pleading, like that of a little puppy who wasn't satisfied and wanted some more food.

I remember the night that Edward used me like it was yesterday. At the time, I looked into his interesting and expressive eyes and saw what I thought to be love and admiration. They were dark and warm, and they made me think his words were true. Later I realized that they were really filled with hunger, and not even a hunger for me, but a hunger for sex. Making him willing to do anything to satisfy those urges.

Never once had I seen that in Emmett's eyes.

"If I give you another chance, we'd just start out as friends. You have to earn my trust back Emmett. And isn't not something I give easily as it is. Earning it back is even harder than getting it in the first place."

"I know Bella. Thank you. Thank you so much. I swear I won't let you down this time. I'll do anything for you. Anytime, anywhere."

My eyes got wide at my last statement and I started to protest by shaking my head vigorously. "Don't say things like that Emmett."

"Why-"

"Just don't." I pleaded, my eyes desperate.

"Okay," he said, just to placate me I'm sure. "Just forget I said anything then. Why don't we go in, you're cold." I tried to rebut his statement, but he silenced me with a reproachful frown. "Don't even try it Bella. I can see some goose bumps where your sleeves have ridden up and you nose and cheeks are bright pink." I relented, just now realizing how cold I actually was. My mind had been so preoccupied with Emmett, that I was so distracted I didn't even realize that being stationary was making me shiver. When I'd been raking I'd been so warm and the weather hadn't even registered in my mind. I leaned the rake against the lone tree in my yard and headed inside with Emmett following closely behind me.

"Where's Logan?" Emmett was taking off his shoes and raised his coat in a question of where to put it.

"There's some pegs on the wall. Logan's godmother and my best friend, Alice, is dropping him off at school for me today. She owns her own business that doesn't open till nine, so if I have an early morning meeting or something, she can drop him off." I made my way into the kitchen and filled my kettle with some water for tea. Emmett entered moments later and came to stand at my side. "You want some tea or hot coco?" I grabbed a mug for myself, pausing before getting another.

"I'm good right now. Might take you up on the hot coco offer later though, if that's alright with you." I nodded my head in confirmation. "What do you do?"

"I'm an English teacher at the middle school." Grabbing my tea bag and sugar, I placed them on the table and sat in the chair next to Emmett's as I waited for my water to start calling for me. I placed my hands in front of me and clasped them together, looking at the interesting patterns in the wood table, anything to keep myself from looking at Emmett. He was too handsome for his own good, even in his disgruntled appearance.

"So why aren't you there today?" In the corner of my eye, I saw Emmett's hand creep closer to mine as he disentangled them and held my smaller hand in his larger one, tracing the creases on my palm with his thumb. I found the action soothing and closed my eyes as my head became heavier.

"I took the day off today. I needed a mental health day and I don't do this often so it's not that big a deal."

"Sometimes it looks like you could use them more often." Emmett responded lightly. My eyes flashed open and narrowed at him.

"You don't know me Emmett. I have things to do, a son to raise. I can't just take as many days off as I want. I do perfectly fine with my current schedule, and I won't have you rearrange it because you don't approve."

"Hey, hey, hey. I didn't mean it like that Bella. I know you have things to do, and I'm not trying to get you to change what you. But sometimes when I look at you, just for a split second, you look so haggard, like you're about to fall over any second because you're so tired. And your eyes, your beautiful, expressive brown eyes look like they're filled with so much pain and fatigue. I'm not trying to change your schedule around Bella. But it isn't wrong to ask for help when you get overwhelmed and mental health days are a definite necessity. Everybody needs 'em."

I slumped, knowing that he probably was right. Even growing up, I very rarely relied on other people to help me. Really the only time I had others help me was when I was pregnant with Logan and when he was still an itty bitty baby. I couldn't drop out of college because I had to make sure I had an education to support him, but it had been hard so I leaned on my parents, Alice and her new husband, and Jake.

It'd been hard and weird admitting that I needed help; I'd always been so independent and not used to it. But I knew that I wanted to give Logan the best life that I could, and with me as a fulltime student and working two part-time jobs, I wouldn't be able to do that on my own.

So Renee and Phil, my mom and step-dad, moved to Port Angeles, since going to Forks would be too weird with my Dad there, and while Phil was still moving around a lot because of his Minor League Baseball career, my mom would come up and help me with Logan. And Alice, Jasper, Alice's husband, and Jake were always there too if I ever needed them.

"So maybe," Emmett started again after our moment of silence. "This weekend, you can go to that spa in Seattle, and I can watch Logan. If that's alright with you." I opened my mouth to automatically disagree with his idea, but then I closed my yapper, and really thought about our conversation. I did feel a little overwhelmed right now, and although I wasn't sleeping horribly, I hadn't been sleeping as well as I could, and I couldn't remember the last time I'd really done anything like this for myself.

"Sound like a plan." I eventually stated. Emmett showed his happiness through a smile and let my hand go when my water started whistling way off tune. "But speaking of personal health, you don't look too good yourself. And I have to say, a beard isn't the best look for you. Stubble, I admit, is sexy. But not beards."

"You think stubble is sexy?" Emmett questioned. Of course _that_ would be the only thing he got out of my statement. I rolled my eyes as I poured the water into my mug and waited for the bad to diffuse. Right when I sat down again, Emmett's hand found my own again, and he started tracing patterns again.

"Yes, I do. However, that was most certainly not the main focus of what I was saying. While you're sitting there lecturing me about personal health, you've obviously been slacking yourself."

"I've always had some trouble sleeping, even when I was younger. It wasn't normally a big deal, but there would be times when I wasn't able to sleep at all."

My eyes widened in shock, knowing that that wasn't good. "Did you tell your parents?" Emmett shook his head without a thought, too engrossed in his patterns. "Emmett!" I scolded.

"What?" He questioned, looking up confused. I snatched my hand away from his and looked him directly in the eye.

"That's so incredibly stupid! Why on earth would you do something like that?"

"'Cause if I told my parents, they'd think that I was taking on too much at once and they'd make me quit sports." My mouth fell open in shock and it was pure instinct when my hand came up and smacked Emmett on the back of the head.

"You _idiot_! Why would you do that? I can understand sports being important to you, but are they really worth risking your health for?" Emmett's brow furrowed and he looked deep in thought. Then, after a minute, he nodded. "_Stupid man!_" I exclaimed, taking my hand away from his. I stood and paced back in forth in front of the counter, unable to understand the male mind. "You get your ass on that couch right now and I don't want you to get up until you've had a least a two hour nap. Understood?" I paused in my pacing and pierced him with a level stare.

"Bella, you're making a big deal out of nothing. I'm fine. Okay."

"Emmett, I swear to God, if you don't get to that couch right now, I will beat you and throw you out. You want to be a good role model for Logan? Well, the first step is doing what you're asked or told. So go." I glared reproachfully at him and reached for the closest thing to me, which just so happened to be a wooden spoon. Emmett's eyes widened and he stood up with his hands up in surrender.

"Okay. I'm going. I'm going." He cried. I lowered the spoon, satisfied with his current answer, but I kept it at the ready should he decide to not do as I said.

"You should hope I don't go on the Internet and find a way to get ahold of your parents Emmett Cullen." His eyes widened in horror and he paused in his walk to the living room.

"You can't do that. Bella, my Dad would talk to my coach and then he'd make me sit out. Football is my career, I can't just stop."

"Emmett, this is ridiculous! You need your sleep. If you parents and coach think you need to take some time off, then that might be the best thing for you. You can't play your best if you aren't sleeping. What if you get really tired during a game and you aren't focused and so you get hurt because of it?"

"I'm not a kid anymore Bella. I can make my own decisions."

"You're hurting yourself Emmett. If this has been going on for as long as you say it has, then you really need to see someone about it. You can't play football half-assed Emmett. If you can't concentrate because you're too tired, then you're going to lose your spot of the field. And then where would you be? What would you do? You have to think about the big picture." I pleaded with him.

His expression fell into one of pain and confliction. "I'll talk to my Dad about it if it continues." I sighed, both in relief and frustration. I wished that he'd talk to his Dad about it no matter what, but at least he said he'd mention it.

"Thank you," I said, setting the spoon back on the counter and walking over to him. "But you still need to go take your nap." Emmett rolled his eyes but smiled while doing so.

"You can be very bossy sometimes Miss Swan." He remarked, starting back to the living room. I followed, bringing my tea and the two books Emmett had given me.

"I just worry about the people I care about. I've always worried about family and close friends, but ever since Logan was born, it's become more pronounced. It drives my Dad and Jake crazy."

"I can only imagine why," Emmett mumbled under his breath, thinking that I didn't hear him. Smiling, I set my tea and books on the coffee table and went to fetch a blanket for Emmett from the closet. When I got back, Emmett was already knocked out. Shaking my head, I laid the blanket over Emmett, making sure it covered his entire body, a hard task. I looked at his face, contorted with stress and worry.

Concern entered my features, and I smoothed out the wrinkles on his brow and ran my hand down his cheek. He relaxed into the couch and I smiled loosely, placing a kiss on his forehead on instinct. I curled up in my favorite armchair, clutching my tea in one hand and my book in the other.

About an hour and a half into Emmett's nap, I set my empty mug and book down and got started on making some lasagna and garlic bread with veggies for lunch and homemade brownies for desert.

Emmett woke up just and the lasagna, garlic bread, and browning were coming out of the oven and the veggies had one more minute to cook. He still didn't look his best, but he looked way better than when he'd first come to my house early this morning. Emmett came to stand by my side as I was cutting up the brownies. When he tried to take one from the pan, I smacked the back of his hand.

"You're going to ruin your lunch if you eat now. Plus, that's for desert."

"Party pooper," he grumbled and rested his forehead on my shoulder.

"How're you feeling?" My tone was lighter now, as I waited with baited breath for his answer.

"Better. Still tired though," he admitted. I turned around and studied his face, running my fingers over the bags under his eyes.

"Promise me when you go back to Chicago you'll take care of yourself. I worry. If this keeps up, it could become a big problem."

"I will. I promise. Our discussion has really made me see things differently. Right when I get back to Chicago, I'll talk to my Dad about it. See what he recommends."

"Thank you." A huge weight felt like it was lifted off my shoulders and I sighed inwardly.

"So what's for lunch?" I rolled my eyes; of course his thoughts would go straight to food.

"Lasagna, garlic break, and steamed veggies with brownies for _desert_." His lower lip jutted out as he pouted and looked longingly at the delicious treat.

"They look so good though," he whined.

"I'm sure you'll live if you wait half an hour before you have one."

"I guess." Emmett's voice was so dismal that I couldn't help the giggle that escaped my lips.

"Could you get some plates and silverware out?" Emmett nodded and willingly helped get lunch on the table.

"What do you want to drink?" Emmett stopped by the fridge and questioned as I scooped portions out for us.

"Uh, I think there's some beer in the crisper on the left." I didn't normally drink beer, but every once in a while, it was nice to indulge and let loose a little. And this was most definitely one of those days.

"What time should Logan get back from school?" I set our plates, that were filled to the brim with food, in our respective spots and waited for Emmett to finished pouring his glass of milk before digging into my meal.

"He gets out around 1:45, but since I don't get out until 2:30 he goes to an afterschool club and I pick him up from there. But Alice is going to pick him up today and then bring him back here." Emmett nodded and the rest of the meal was spent in silence because Emmett was too busy shoveling food into his mouth every second, as if he was afraid it was all going to disappear before he could finish. "You're going to get the hiccups if you keep that up Emmett." I scolded lightly. "Are you even chewing or are you just swallowing everything whole?" Emmett smiled embarrassedly. "There is more food. I made sure to cook a lot."

"Sorry. I just get really hungry, and, well, yeah…"

"I'm just teasing you Emmett. I didn't mean anything by it really. You just… You're a one of a kind." I didn't really realize it until I said the words, but Emmett really was one of a kind. I'd never met another man quite like him and I didn't think I ever would.

Emmett cleared his throat awkwardly after taking a huge bite of lasagna on top of a piece of garlic break. "I hope that's a good thing." Some of the sauce got onto his cheek, but he kept eating, waiting for me to answer.

"It most certainly is."

"Good." Emmett started taking his time on eating and a smile bloomed across my face. "So, I saw that you started looked at your France books. Do you like them?"

My eyes widened in excitement. "I love them! They're perfect. But how'd you know?" When Emmett was done with his first plate, I got up to get him seconds even as he waved me off for doing so.

"When I was putting the DVD in for Logan the first night I came over here, I saw a French book on your coffee table, so I just kind of assumed. Why do you like France so much?"

I shrugged my shoulders as I really thought about the question. "Ya' know, I don't really know why. I've just always loved it. From the pictures I've seen and the things I've heard, it sounds like a magnificent place. I've never been though." After finishing my food, I rinsed my plate before putting it in the dishwasher and sat back down to finish my beer.

"It really is a cool place."

"You've been?" I leaned forward in my seat in anxious anticipation at his answer.

Emmett laughed at my reaction and took a sip of his milk. "Yeah, I've been. It's been a little while, but I still remember most of it. My Mom and Dad are really big into traveling, so every other year we'd go someplace new once my sister and I were old enough. We went to France when I was fourteen."

"So where else did you go?" I couldn't contain my excitement at talking with someone who'd been to France. No one I knew had been out of the U.S. and only very few had been out of the state of Washington. Which really sucked because I loved to travel. There was something about seeing new places, eating new foods, and experiencing different cultures that just called to me.

"Uh, Germany, Brazil, Ireland, Japan, Canada, Australia, and Sweden," he listed.

"Wow," I breathed out, wishing I could give those experiences to Logan. I knew that traveling could amount to some very good and useful skills in life. "So which place is your favorite?"

"I'm not sure," Emmett replied, doing the same to his plate that I'd done to mine. "I've never really thought about it. But German really stands out to me because of all the cool castles and the cobblestone streets in some of the villages. We went to this really cool torture chamber museum too as well as the Eagle's Nest, which was really interesting to see. Creepy, but interesting." I snickered when I realized that Emmett still had the sauce on his face.

"Hey Emmett, you've got some sauce on your face." Blushed a light pink and wiped around the corners of his mouth, missing the spot by a mile. I shook my head and tried to tell him where it was, but he kept missing and went in the wrong direction. "Come here," I said, laughing at him. Emmett dutifully came over and crouched down so that I could reach him face. I took my finger and wiped the sauce from his beard, grimacing at the feel of the harsh bristle and wiping my finger off on a napkin.

"Thanks. You really don't like beards do you?" I shook my head as a shiver of disgust overtook me.

"I really don't. I find them repulsive and it seems that most crazy serial killers have them. Which is an even bigger turn off for me."

"I'll keep that in mind…" He stood up to his full height again and his eyes wandered over to the brownies that were on the counter.

"Go on," I bid. "But not too many or you'll get a stomach ache." Emmett grinned like a three year old on Christmas morning and grabbed one for each of us.

"I like that you do that," he said, stuffing the entire brownie in his mouth and wiping the crumbs from his."

"Do what?" I took a little more time to eat my brownie, savoring every bite.

"You take care of people. Even if you don't realize it, you always say something to make sure that someone else is safe." I shrugged; embarrassed that he'd been paying such close attention to me. "It's a good quality to have."

"Thanks," I murmured and blushed even deeper.

"I love your blush. And when you're really embarrassed it moves down your neck. Just like it's doing right now." I blushed even deeper at his words and went to the sink so my back was to him, hoping that if I couldn't see him watching me then my blush would recede. But I had no such luck. As I got a cup of water, I could still feel Emmett's unrelenting gaze on my back.

"Why do you do that?" I questioned in a whisper, wondering if I really wanted to hear the truth. My fingers clenched the counter, my knuckles going white from the strain.

"Do what?" I heard the legs of Emmett's chair scratch against the floor, but I didn't dare turn around to face him. "Do what Bella?"

"Stare at me like that." Emmett's form came up behind me as he placed a hand on either side of me.

"Does it make you uncomfortable?" Emmett's voice was soft and imploring as he gently pried my fingers from the counter and rubbed feeling back into them.

"Yes," I admitted. I felt Emmett stiffen slightly behind me and tried to swallow past the lump in my throat.

"Why?" Emmett rested his chin lightly on my shoulder and looked upon our intertwined fingers.

"I'm not used to attention like that. I'm not exactly like the other women you've been with Emmett. Guys don't normally follow me or make a big deal about watching my ass. I'm not beautiful like the other women. I love my body and who I am, don't get me wrong, but I'm not going to kid myself."

"Bella," Emmett started, then paused as he thought of what to say next. "You're crazy," he finally decided, which was _not_ what I had thought he was going to say.

"I'm crazy? Why don't you tell me how _I'm_ crazy. I'm just saying what's true Emmett. It feels weird having you look at me like that."

"Bella," he interjected as he placed his hands on my shoulders, forcing me to turn around and face him. "If anything, you're more beautiful." I started to shake my head in denial but he backed me up against the counter with his body and held my face still with his hands, forcing me to look him in the eye. "You are Bella. I don't understand how you can't see it, but I'll tell you what I see anyway.

"You have a natural beauty that no one could ever try to replicate, and it takes my breath away every time I glance your way. All the other women put on so much makeup and they go through all these surgeries to try to make themselves look "better". You're so honest and true to what you believe in and you won't let anyway sway you in your opinions. And you put others, especially Logan, before yourself. You're probably the most selfless person I've ever met in my entire life."

A breath hitched in my throat at Emmett's words. But I knew that they weren't just words to him, they were something more. They were the truth; otherwise I knew he wouldn't have said them. "I stare at you like that Bella, because I'm so amazed by what a wonderful woman and mother you are. I want to do to you what you do to others. I want to take care of you when you're sick, offer advice when you're confused, hold you when you're scared, encourage you when you want to try something new. I just want to be here for you Bella, it whatever way you'll take me."

"Thank you," I whispered, unable to say anything else as I wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my head in his chest. Emmett dropped his hands from my face and held me tight to him, rubbing a large hand soothingly on my back.

After we broke apart a few moments later, Emmett and I headed to the living room where we settled down to watch some TV. Emmett sat in against the arm and I curled up next to him, not wanting to lose his strength and warmth quite yet, not in the literal sense. Emmett was so much like a baby's teddy bear or blanket, I decided. He offered warmth, acceptance, company, and comfort. My big burly teddy bear smiled down at me and draped and arm over my shoulders, pulling me closer into his side and placing a kiss to the top of my head. I gave Emmett power over the remote, not caring what was on so long as we both stayed put.

In Emmett's embrace, my body and mind relaxed to gooey mush. I couldn't help but feel that way in his arms. There was something about this man that just made you feel carefree and happy-go-lucky. Normally my mind was a jumble of thoughts and ideas, many of which I couldn't even understand because I had so much to think about, that it was hard for me to _really_ relax and enjoy my time with someone. But Emmett made it so easy.

With my mind completely turned off, I was unable to keep myself from dozing on and off as Emmett watched an action movie that I didn't catch the name of. What I did know though, was that it had a lot of explosions, gun shots, and curses in it.

I awoke fully when Emmett shifted next to me, dislodging me from his side. "Wha's goin' on?" I mumbled, blinking lethargically.

"A car just pulled into the drive and I was going to check it out. You can go back to sleep." Sometime while I was asleep, Emmett had thoughtfully covered me with the blanket that I had used for him and I pulled it up to my chin as my brain started to wake up and thoughts began zooming around my head again.

"Wha' time is it?"

Emmett looked down at his watch. "2:15." My eyes flew open and I shot up, throwing the blanket to the floor as I grabbed Emmett's wrist and looked at his watch to see for myself.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, _shit_!" I exclaimed, running into the kitchen, leaving a confused Emmett in my wake.

"Bella!" He called. "What's going on?"

"That'll be Logan and Alice. And I haven't made Logan's snack yet." A string of gunshots fired from the living room. "Can you go change that really quick pleas? Logan doesn't need to see or hear that." Emmett nodded and jogged off into the living room, turning the TV off just as they walked in.

"Mommy!" My baby called out, running awkwardly through the house with his backpack, shoes, and jacket still on. I squatted down to his height and gave him a big hug."Auntie Ali's back Mommy. And Unka Jasper too!"

"I told you they'd come back, didn't I." Logan nodded, taking his backpack off and putting it by his chair.

"Yeah, but I misted 'um. I love Auntie Ali and Unka Jasper. And I was 'orried 'bout dem." Alice came in then and gave me a hug.

"You're looking better. I don't know why you don't listen to me more when I tell you that days off are good for your health." I bit my lip, setting Logan's snack on the table and helping him into his chair.

"Well actually…" I trailed off as Emmett entered the room again.

"Sorry, I had to use the bath…" He too trailed off as he took notice of Alice standing next to me. I felt Alice's stone cold gaze on me and I cringed inwardly, knowing that she wasn't pleased at all.

"Emmy!" Logan exclaimed with his mouth full of carrot and ranch. My son scrambled down from his seat and raced to hug Emmett's legs. "I 'aven't seen you in four days Emmy! Where you go?" Emmett hugged Logan back, but his eyes kept darting between Alice and I

"I had some stuff I had to take care of." Logan accepted the answer and took Emmett's hand in his own as he brought Emmett over to where Alice and I stood.

"Emmy, this is my Auntie Ali. She just got mawried to my Unka Jasper. He plays Legos wit me." Alice smiled politely at Emmett for Logan's sake, but as soon as Logan turned around and led Emmett back over to the table, she turned the stink eye back on me.

"Hey Logan, why don't you take your snack and go show Emmett your room." Logan's eyes lit up in excitement and he quickly grabbed his bowl of carrots in one hand and Emmett's hand in the other.

"Yeah! Let's go Emmy, I wanna show you my Legos." Emmett questioned me with a look but I didn't bother to remark, not wanting Logan to overhear anything that he wasn't supposed to. As Logan dragged Emmett up the stairs, he looked back at me once more before he surrendered to Logan's amiable chatter.

Right when they were out of earshot, Alice rounded on me. "What is _he_ doing here Bella? I thought that you weren't going to let this happen to you again. What's going on?" She hissed. I loved Alice like a sister, she'd always been there for me and she helped tremendously with Logan, but sometimes she could be a little over exuberant and protective when it came to family.

"It's not what you think. Alice. There… there was a mistake and I was in the wrong. Emmett wasn't trying to use me, a reporter got it wrong. We talked about it and worked things out." Alice rolled her eyes.

"Well of course he's going to say that Bella! He just wants to get another chance to get into your pants and make another notch on his bedpost." I sighed in exasperation, wondering why she couldn't believe me. I know that I made some mistakes in the past, but I learned from them and made sure not to make the same mistakes. I appreciated that she wanted to protect me, but I wasn't incompetent. If I'd have thought that Emmett was anything like Edward then I would never have let him into my life.

"Alice, I know that you're just looking out for me, but I can also make decisions for myself. He's called every morning and night and left a caring message to make sure that I knew he was still thinking about me. And he left a gift for me every morning, something sweet and sincere. If he'd just wanted to get into my pants, he'd have given up a while ago after he found out I wasn't going to have sex with him right off the bat. Emmett's already said that this is big to him."

"But Bella, he lives in Chicago, Illinois. He travels all over the place and he's a fricken' professional football player. If something does happen between you two, do you think you'd be able to handle everything that would come with being in a relationship with him? Long distance relationships are hard Bella, even for adults. And how would Logan feel about all this?" Alice made very valid points, all of which I'd thought about already.

"You're making valid points, Alice, and I appreciate that you're looking out for me, but I can take care of myself too. And we're just friends. I've made no commitments to Emmett. He has said that this is different for him, but he knows that Logan's gotta come first. I'm sure once he goes back to Chicago he'll find some other woman to occupy his time." I might not've been able to admit this to anyone else, but I knew deep down that I'd be crushed if he did find someone else.

Alice laughed humorlessly. "You're naïve if you think that Bella. I saw him when he dropped off those gifts and I saw him just now. He's definitely interested in you, I'm just worried about what'll happen to you if you start to reciprocate those feelings but it doesn't work out between you two." I had a feeling I was already starting to reciprocate Emmett's feelings. When he had first asked me to hang out after we'd dropped Logan off at my Dad's, my reaction had been purely instinct. A man hadn't paid any attention to me in a long time and it honestly kind of scared me. The act of making yourself vulnerable to someone else didn't really appeal all that much to me.

But now that I'd had time to think things through and sort fact from fiction, I realized that the idea of Emmett and I becoming an item was starting to appeal to me.

My brow furrowed as I remembered her words. "Wait, what do you mean you saw him drop the gifts off?" Alice's eyes widened when she realized what she'd just said. She obviously hadn't been planning on telling me this little tidbit of information.

"He'd come by just a couple minutes after you left with Logan, and I was just sitting in my car across the street. I hadn't left yet because I was talking to Jasper and he doesn't like it when I'm on my phone and driving at the same time. That man worries way too much sometimes."

"But you love it," I retorted.

"I do," her sigh was full of contentment.

"At least give him a chance, Alice. Stay for dinner. Call Jasper and have him come over after work and I'll call everyone else and we'll have a big dinner." I stated, drawing her attention back to the matter at hand. Her eyes narrowed and her face scrunched up and I waited nervously for her answer. If something did happen between Emmett and me, it wouldn't be very good if my best friend hated my boyfriend.

_Boyfriend_.

Wow. That was a weird word to say even though Emmett and I weren't together.

Finally, Alice nodded her consent to the idea. I squealed, something very unlike me, and ran to give Alice a big hug, happy that my best friend and I weren't going to be at each other's throats concerning this matter.

"I'll go call Jasper and let him know what's going on. What time should I tell him?" I looked up at the ceiling as I tried to recall all the times that everyone got off work at.

"Seven." I finally decided.

"Sounds good. You gonna need any help?"

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "As if I'm going to let you anywhere near my cooking, if I did, I wouldn't have a house to come home to." Alice stuck her tongue out at me and smiled as she dug her phone out of her monstrous purse.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She smiled once more and went to the living room to call Jasper.

"Logan!" I called out, getting my phone book out of the drawer by the phone.

"Yeah Mommy?" He answered from the top of the stairs.

"You wanna call some people for me?"

"Yeah! Who we gonna call Mommy?" As soon as he started to recognize numbers, Logan had an infatuation with dialing phone numbers. I had no problems with it and it was good practice for him.

"We need to call Grandpa Charlie, Miss Sue, Auntie Leah, Uncle Seth, Uncle Jake, and Grandma Renee and Grandpa Phil. We're going to have a big dinner tonight at seven and we're going to invite them." Logan's eyes got wide with excitement and he started bouncing up and down and clapping his hands together. Logan didn't get along with new people very well, but when it came to family it was a whole 'nother ballgame.

"And Auntie Ali and Unka Jasper? Can they come too?"

"Yep. Auntie Ali's calling Uncle Jasper right now." Logan clapped his hands together and started dragging a chair across the floor to the counter so that he could reach the phone.

Emmett came down just as Logan started typing in the first phone number. "Everything okay?" He questioned, coming to my side as I sorted through the freezer, trying to decide what to make.

"Everything's perfect." I replied, coming out from the depths of the cold. "I decided to invite my family over for a big dinner. Kind of last minute but… whatever. You're more than welcome to stay."

Emmett looked a bit apprehensive and my happy high immediately dropped down a couple meters. "I don't want to impose Bella. They're your family, and I'm sure many of them aren't too happy with me right now."

"They aren't." I paused and thought about what I'd just said. "Well they won't be for much longer. If you don't want to stay that's perfectly fine, but you're more than welcome to join us. I'm sure Logan would appreciate it."

Emmett raised an eyebrow. "Only Logan?" I ducked my head and blushed.

"No, not _only_ Logan." I admitted, smiling when Emmett forced me to look up at him when he placed his finger under my chin. Our eyes met and we just stared at each other for a moment.

"I'd love to stay," he said.

A huge smile appeared on my face and my happy high returned. "Great. Would you mind helping Logan out with the numbers if he needs it? I've gotta get to work if I'm gonna pull this off." Emmett smiled at my smile and agreed to help Logan should he need it.

I turned back around to the freezer and lost myself in it's depths again, deciding just to make whatever I had handy instead of wasting time to go out to the store.

My smile got bigger as the kitchen got hotter as I worked and I heard Alice and Emmett playing with Logan in the living room. All the calls were made and everybody said that they were coming. It was going to be a loud and crazy night, but that's what I wanted. I wanted to be surrounded by the people I loved and loved me back.

**AN: The next three chapters are going to be kind of weird in the fact that they normal trading off of POVs isn't going to happen. Chapter six is Bella's POV and chapter's seven and eight are Emmett's POV. As always, reviewers will get an excerpt, however, it won't be for the next chapter since I'll be posting it and chapter eight some other time tonight. So you'll get an excerpt of Chapter nine.**


	6. Beautiful

**Chapter Six**

**Bella's POV**

**Chapter Title: B-e-a-utiful**

**Day: Thursday night and Friday, Week One**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations:**

My Guy, My Girls By: Irenella Courmett (Twilight/Completed)

Reservations By: LittleLea05 (Twilight/Completed)

For the past four hours I'd been working like crazy in the kitchen, trying to make enough food to feed everyone. It definitely was a little stressful, but Emmett and Alice kept Logan occupied which was helpful, and I wanted to do this. I loved big family gatherings and cooking, so it was nice to combine two of my favorite passions, even if it had been very last minute.

My Dad and Sue were the first to arrive, soon followed by Jasper, my mom, Phil, and Seth. Leah came a little later, having gotten stuck in some traffic, and Jake came last because he'd gone all the way back to the Reservation to pick up Billy, his father. Everyone offered to help, but I declined each and every one of them. My kitchen was exactly that: _mine_. And I trusted very few enough to cook in it.

It was kind of awkward when everyone first met Emmett, but shortly after the introductions were made things started to settle down and everyone was able to engage in comfortable conversation. I was starting to see what Emmett meant about people treating him differently, and it kind of made me feel… weird. I didn't like that people treated him differently just because of his occupation, but on the other hand I could understand it because meeting a famous person tended to send your brain into overdrive. Thankfully though, everyone was very welcoming. Well, everyone except for my Dad. At first he'd been really pissed, but then I explained what had happened to him and he calmed down so that he was only miffed. Which was a big improvement in my book.

I smiled and rolled my eyes when I heard all they guys arguing about football. Having a football player around was _exactly_ what they needed to get their conversations more intense. Not! They fought like cats and dogs as it was, having Emmett there just made everything more heated. But thankfully they remembered that Logan had supersonic hearing, so they all made sure not to swear and kept their bantering lighthearted.

For the most part, I was in the kitchen and unable to socialize with my family, but my Mom took mercy on me and soon joined me in the kitchen to offer me some company. I graciously accepted and we started to talk about mundane topics. About twenty minutes into our conversation, I noticed her starting to get a little antsy as she kept shooting glances between me and someone else in the living room. At first I was confused as to what she were edgy about, but after Emmett entered the kitchen to see how I was doing and I noticed her staring gob smacked at him, I got a pretty good idea. Deciding to make her suffer a little bit more I kept quiet, wanting to see if she'd ever get the guts to bring Emmett up.

When she still said nothing about him after fifteen minutes I decided to take pity on her. "What do you want to know?" I questioned. My Mom squealed and rushed over closer to me so that we couldn't be overheard. People from the living room looked up at my Mom and her eccentric ways but I just shrugged my shoulders in a "what can ya' do" fashion, hoping they'd get back to their previous conversations. I'd grown up with my crazy Mom so it didn't really affect me anymore.

When she was huddled up close to me, I paused in my preparations and turned around to give her my full attention.

"Have you kissed yet? Is he a good kisser? Oh, I bet he is. Are you boyfriend and girlfriend? Are things serious between you two? Do you think you're going to get married? When are you gonna _seal the deal_, if ya' know what I mean. He's probably fantastic in bed and gifted in size." With each one of her questions my eyes got bigger and bigger in shock. I'd expected her to ask her what he was like as a person or something else mundane, but most certainly not something like that. I should've known though, my Mom knew no boundaries when it came to things like that. Sometimes I wondered how Phil dealt with it all, he was a much more laid back kind of guy and pretty much the opposite of my Mom.

"Mom!" I shushed in exasperation, my cheeks flaming up as fire coursed through them. "I'm not going to talk about things like that, even if we had done something of the sort. That's personal stuff. Do you really expect me to tell you the size of his…" the fire spread to my neck and the rest of my face. "His…" My Mom looked at me expectantly. "Oh, you know what I mean!" I exclaimed, unable to say that word out loud.

"You don't talk to Alice about this stuff?" I shook my head vehemently.

"No! I don't want to hear about her sex life with Jasper. I'd probably never be able to look him in the eye if I did. That stuff is private, and should only be between the people whom it directly concerns." Mom rolled her eyes and shook her head but she didn't question me anymore.

Mom stayed in the kitchen with my, but we switched back to the more mundane topics. Thankfully. I was pretty sure that it took me a good twenty minutes before I was able to get my blush under control. I still couldn't believe that my Mom, of all people, had brought that topic up. I just couldn't wrap my head around that fact. I took a deep breath and got back to the task at hand, not wanting to get too distracted and have things not be ready on time.

By 6:45, everything was ready to go and plates of food covered every available surface in my kitchen. Without even being called in, everyone started to file in. I motioned to everyone to start getting their food, and I couldn't help but smile and feel grateful when I noticed that Emmett was helping Logan with his plate. Sometimes my son's eyes were too big for his appetite and he didn't always realize that he'd gotten too much food until it was too late.

As everyone was getting their food, I grabbed all of the odds and ends that people asked for that I'd forgotten to put out. They all headed into the dining room, which was only used for big get-togethers such as this one. Seeing as this was the only room big enough to fit everyone comfortably. I grabbed my dinner last, and was surprised to see that Emmett had saved me a seat next to Logan. I stopped in the doorway, feeling a warmth spread through me as I looked around the room and saw all the people that I cared about in one spot. It was a nice feeling, and one that I wanted more often. Emmett looked up from his cutting of Logan's chicken and Logan followed suit.

"Mommy! Mommy! Emmy saveded you a seat by me. Come sit by me Mommy!"

"I'm comin' baby. Did you say thank you to Emmett for helping you with your food and cutting it up for you?" Logan nodded matter-of-factly and grabbed his cup of milk, taking a big drink from it.

"Guess wat I did while you was cookin' Mommy!"

"What'd you do?" I questioned, just as eagerly as he.

"I playeded wit Emmy, an' Unka Jasper, and Auntie Leah with my Legos, dinosawrs, and trucks. We had fun playin' Mommy. And Unka Jasper told me 'bout his trip with Auntie Ali and what dey went to see. He said dat maybe sometime I could take a trip wit dem too."

"Yeah? Did Uncle Jasper tell you he went and what things he and Auntie Alice saw?" Logan nodded his head and stuck a piece of his chicken in his mouth with his fingers. "Use your fork Logan." I reprimanded.

"Sowry Mommy. Unka Jasper said dey went to Hawayii n' dey saw the fire mountains and dey went to da beach evry day. N' it was sunny _evry day_! Can you believe it Mommy? Sun evry day! Can we go to Hawayii one day Mommy?"

"We'll see Logan. And some places do have the sun out every day; it just depends on where you are in the world." Logan's eyes got wide at that fact, unable to believe it since he'd only ever seen Forks, Washington weather.

The rest of dinner went by rather uneventful. Everyone enjoyed themselves, but by 8:15 Logan was starting to fall asleep standing up and everyone else needed to start heading home since we all had work tomorrow. After everyone had left, I quickly put Logan to bed and then went back downstairs to find Emmett already cleaning up some.

"You don't have to help you know. I can handle this by myself if you want to go home. I'm sure you must be really tired." Emmett shook his head and continued to rinse the plates and silverware and then place them into the dishwasher. "Thank you. So were you overwhelmed?" I questioned, scooping the leftovers out and putting them into fitting containers for how much food was left.

"A little. Your Dad and Jasper didn't seem too fond of me. And I don't think Alice is my biggest fan either, but I can guess why they don't exactly approve of me right now. Your Mom was more than welcoming though, she seems like a very nice woman and she was very interested in getting to know me more." He had no idea how interested my Mom was in him. She would never cheat on Phil, my Mom wasn't that type of woman, but she did like to look at other guys. And Phil didn't mind because he knew that she would always come home to him and she would always stay true to their marriage.

"My Mom's always been more social than I ever will be. She likes to meet new people, talk up a storm, and go to social events. I like doing those things too sometimes, but not as much as my Mom."

Emmett paused in his rinsing and turned to look at me. "I like that about you." He said quietly. "I take it that the social events you like are more like tonight though, right?" I nodded, but didn't pause in packaging the food. "Me too. This is the kind of get together that I like also. Family and friends is where it's at. Every once in a while it's kind of nice to dress up and go someplace fancy, but for the most part, I like the more laid back events. And my agent gets that, which is really nice. We both know that I need to promote for my career and all, but she doesn't try to push events or women who are in the spotlight on me for publicity purposes. Which I'm grateful for. A lot of agents will do a lot of stuff to get their players more publicity so that they can further their own careers. Dayna's not like that though. She gets all her clients because she's good at what she does and she's rather easy going considering she works in a male dominated field and with a lot of men."

This surprised me a little. Since Emmett played football on national TV, I kind of figured that he like to be in the spotlight. "So if you're not a big in-the-spotlight kind of guy, then why play in the NFL where everyone can see you? And if your agent didn't push the blonde bimbos, then how'd you get so many?" I questioned with a raised eyebrow, feeling a little jealousy course through my veins.

"I play in the NFL because I've loved football my entire life and it was the next way to further my love. It's not really a job to me; it's more of fun play time that I take seriously. As for the blonde bimbos," he said as he finished the last plate and came over to help me. "I wanted that. I thought that that was what I wanted, what made me happy. But I've very quickly realized that that is not the case. In fact, it's very, _very_ far off from what I'm finding I want."

"And what do you want?" I started the dishwasher, knowing that Logan was stone cold dead upstairs and that the noise wouldn't wake him. Emmett came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waste, pulling me in close as he rested his chin on my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

"I'm not one hundred percent sure right now, but I think I've got a pretty good idea."

"What does that idea consist of?" I whispered back, placing my hands over his.

"You sure you want to know right now? I don't want to frighten you." I thought about that for a minute, intrigued to hear his worry about frightening me away. Then I nodded my head. "What I want, beautiful Bella, is to settle down with an amazing woman and her son and make a family with said beautiful and amazing woman."

I sucked in a surprised breath and my heart skipped a couple of beats. "You sound so sure," I whispered, unable to grasp how he could sound so positive about this when we'd only just met.

"That's because I am, Bella. I've been with a lot of women, and I've felt a lot of things with them. I cared deeply for a couple of them, but none of them ever made me feel the way you do. I thought that I was living the life before I met you. I didn't think there was anything else I could ever want in life because I didn't see myself as the kind of guy who would settle down and have a family. But I can see myself doing that now Bella. When I first met you, you… awakened, I guess is the word, something in me. I don't know what exactly it is right now and I don't know how to explain it to you, but it's there. I can feel it now, with you in my arms, or whenever I'm with you and Logan in general. It makes me feel so good Bella, so full of joy and life. I want you to feel this way someday."

"Doesn't it scare you to feel such strong feelings over someone you just met?"

He thought about his words carefully before finally deciding what to say. "Honestly, Bella? It scares the crap outta me. I've grown up knowing and learning that you should wait till you really know a person before you give a definite answer on how you feel about them. But I can't bring myself to do that with you. I can't wait. I feel like I know you so well already."

I was silent as I took in his words. I wanted to be as confident as he was in how he felt and how he expressed his feelings, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't. I didn't know what was stopping me, but there was a wall in my way, preventing me from truly expressing myself.

"I'm not saying that I'm ready to start a relationship with you right now Emmett, but if we did, how would it work? You live halfway across the country."

"I don't know exactly how we'd make it work, but I know that we would. I can try to come here on weekends when I'm not busy, and you and Logan are more than welcome to come visit me whenever you feel like it. Just make sure you tell me if you're planning on coming up that way I can make sure I've got some free time." I nodded my head in a stupor and stared blankly in front of me, not quite sure what to make of his words.

"You should probably start heading home, it's getting late and you need a good night's sleep. I can take care of the rest of the mess."

"You sure? I don't mind staying a little while longer to help clean up."

"I'm sure. Thank you for the offer though."

"Okay," he sighed. "Would I be able to see you tomorrow?"

"I'm going to go to work tomorrow and afterwards I need to start grading some essays that my students were supposed to turn in today. We could have lunch together though."

"Sounds good to me. What time should I go to the school?"

"My lunch is at twelve. If you go to the main office, I'll tell the secretary I'm expecting you and she'll send you to my room. Do you want any directions?"

"Naw. I'll just Google map it tonight."

"Okay. You'd better head out."

"I suppose you're right." He sighed heavily and removed his arms from around my waist, heading to the front door to slip on his shoes and jacket.

"Make sure you watch for deer too."

"I will," he said, coming over to me and wrapping me in his embrace once more. "Don't stay up too late. I'll see you tomorrow."

"You too." Emmett and I separated and I watched him get in his car and leave. When I couldn't see his car anymore, I went back to the kitchen and finished cleaning everything up before heading up to be.

_No. No. No. You're not invited! Go away! Any week but this week. Please leave!_ I knew my begging was futile. My very unwelcome friend would not leave for a week. The mind blowing cramps were a sign of it. _Why today?_ I asked myself. I could have been almost any other day and I would have been okay with her coming, but today? I hurried to the bathroom and took some Ibuprofen to help with the cramps and bloating that came with being a woman.

I took a glance at the clock next to my bed; it read 4:30 A.M. Great, so now my _friend _came into town with a vengeance and I was losing an hour and a half of sleep. This was turning out to be the worst day of my life. A warm shower was called for.

After turning on the water I stripped out of my pajamas and slipped into the shower. The warm water cascaded down my back wonderfully. My eyes drifted close. The shower made up for some of the bad that happened today. It was relaxing and helped me forget the pain that wouldn't stop, only decrease in agonizingly small amounts. Once I turned into a prune I decided I should get to business and wash my hair and body, there was no way I was shaving today. Maybe tomorrow if I was feeling better.

For a minute, I was debating about calling it off with Emmett. I wasn't going to be the best company today and I didn't want him to suffer for it. I dismissed the thought right after though, realizing that I'd be sad if I didn't get to see Emmett today. Especially after he'd asked to see me today. I was sure that he'd understand why I wasn't going to be the cheeriest today.

Heading back to my room with a towel wrapped tightly around my body, I decided on some comfy jeans and a light blue sweater. I loved Fridays because the teachers were allowed to dress more casually. And comfort was totally my priority today.

I made my way down to the kitchen and started making all the lunches from the leftovers from the night before. I worked quietly and efficiently, and in no time the task was done. Breakfast got worked on next and as the clock worked its way to six, I climbed back up the stairs to wake Logan up. Much to my surprise, he was already awake and just lying in bed, cuddling with his Teddy.

"Morning baby. You ready for breakfast?" Logan looked up at me as I came in, and scooted over in the bed some. I sat down in the space he made for me and brushed some of his curls off his forehead. "I've got some Cinnamon Roll oatmeal ready for ya'." Logan looked up at me and then raised his arms, silently asking for me to carry him downstairs. "Alright baby. Let's go." I pulled the covers off of him and hefted him into my arms, sad that he was starting to get too big for this.

I sat Logan in his chair and cautioned him about the possibility of the oats still being hot before I made a bowl of cereal for myself to eat. Our breakfast was quiet as Logan woke up and I mentally prepared myself for the long day that was ahead of me. By the time we had finished our meal, Logan was fully awake and my meds were finally starting to kick in. Now in a better mood, I had few qualms about cleaning up and finishing tedious tasks such as putting away the dishes, wiping down the table where Logan had spilt a couple times, and finished up with the lunches.

Going upstairs, I finished getting ready and grabbed the rest of my belongings that I needed for school and made my way to Logan's room to make sure he had his backpack ready and he'd brushed his teeth.

As usual, Logan had done everything he was supposed to and he was just struggling with his second shoe. I bent down to help him and held his hand as we made our way back down to the main level. After grabbing all three lunches, I grabbed my jacket, made sure Logan had his on, and headed out, locking the door behind me.

The car ride to Logan's preschool was filled with Logan singing, and I humming quietly to myself, with the Banana Man. Out of all the CDs that I had for him, this was by far his favorite. When I pulled into the preschool parking lot, I quickly turned off the car and helped Logan out before I walked him inside. Many parents just sat in their cars and watched their kids go through the front door. That scared me though, I was always frightened that something was going to happen in that short period of time and because I was in the truck, I'd be too late to do anything about it. So every morning that I dropped Logan off, I always walked inside the door with him before giving him a hug and kiss, and I knew that Alice did the same.

"Bye, bye Mommy." Logan said after he kissed my cheek.

"Bye, bye Logan. Have a good day at school." Logan nodded and walked away a couple minutes before turning around to see me on the other side of the door. He crossed his arms and placed his hands on the opposite shoulder, making it look like he was hugging himself. I did the same and then blew a kiss to him that he caught and tucked into his pocket. I smiled and couldn't help that my eyes started to get a little watery as he blew a kiss right back to me that I caught. I had no idea what I'd do without him; he was my special little man. Logan turned back around and headed to his classroom and I headed back to the truck as soon as he turned a corner and I couldn't see him anymore.

In the truck, I opted for silence as I drove the twenty minutes to work. I loved singing with Logan and the Banana Man, but right now I just needed some peace and quiet to think about things. Mainly Emmett and what was going to happen between us.

I'd be lying if I said that I didn't find Emmett attractive or enjoyable and his presence amusing. Because he was all of those things and more. I just questioned how the chips would fall. What if the long distance relationship didn't work? What if he found someone else who caught his attention more than I did? How would Logan handle everything? Those were my biggest fears. And something told me that I'd never be able to get over them, no matter how much Emmett consoled me, until we actually had a relationship and I could see for myself. That was my worst fear.

I was 'rescued' from my thoughts as soon as I parked at school and got out because one of my students spotted me and came charging over. Diane was a nice girl, and she was very smart, but sometimes she just needed to cool down and relax a little.

"Miss Swan! Miss Swan! I was wondering if I'd be able to come in this morning to do some test corrections from the test we took on Wednesday. I would've talked to you after school Wednesday but I couldn't because I had to go to a doctor's appointment right after and then you weren't here yesterday. And I'm really, really, really, sorry this is short notice, but I really need to make those corrections." Diane said in one breath. My brow furrowed as I tried to remember what exactly her score was.

"Diane, you only missed a perfect score by half a point." I grabbed my bags and made my way to the school, Diane following close behind.

"I know. But I really need to fix that. Please, please, please." I fought a sigh and smiled back at Diane. I was glad that she wanted to make sure that her grades were exactly what she wanted them to be, most of my other students just settled what I gave them and didn't even try to fight for something better, but sometimes Diane could go a little overboard.

"Alright Diane. You can come in and fix your test. Oh thank you so much Miss Swan! I really appreciate it." She gushed. I smiled at the young overachiever and listened to Diane ramble on about how 'horrible' my substitute was the day before. I nodded and shook my head in disappointment in all the right places, but my mind was really preoccupied with the fact that Emmett was going to come and eat lunch with me. Because he wanted to see me today. I was so giddy and excited about that, that I felt like a teenage girl with her very first crush again. I had no idea where this 'relationship was going to go, but if I did continue, I sure as hell hoped that I would feel like this through the rest of the relationship. Something told me that with Emmett as my relationship partner, that wouldn't be a problem.

A Friday had never dragged on this much for me before, of that I was sure. The periods seemed to last forever even though we were only playing Jeopardy. Every Friday I liked to put together a Jeopardy game of all the material that we learned throughout the week so that the kids would remember everything that we had gone over. It was also nice because no one really liked to work on Fridays, even me sometimes, and it was fun for the kids because I gave out little prizes of candy to the winning team.

Finally twelve rolled around, but there was no sign of Emmett. I was imputing grades into the computer as I battled with myself over if I should call him or not, glancing between the clocks on my computer, phone, the school clock, and watch to see if one, or all, of them were running fast or slow. They weren't. All of them were right on-time due to my quirk of always needing to be on time. I couldn't help the disappointment flowed through me when I realized this.

I was about to start eating without him when he marched into my room at twelve-fifteen. I looked up from my computer and smiled up at him when my medicine decided to abruptly stop working. I doubled over in pain at the mind-blowing cramps that coursed through me. "Bella!" Emmett exclaimed, and rushed over to me. "Bella? What's wrong?"

"Advil in my purse." I ground out, clutching my stomach in hope that the pain would recede soon. Emmett reluctantly left my side and grabbed my purse, filtering through it until he found what he was looking for. He handed me two of the tiny pills and the water bottle that I tried to always keep at my desk. Sitting up, I took the bottle and pills gratefully and swallowed both of them quickly. I doubled back over when done and waited for the medicine to kick in. Emmett stood next to me, his brow wrinkled in worry as he used one hand to rub soothing patterns on my back and the other to run through my hair.

The meds finally kicked in ten minutes later and I sat up slowly. "Sorry about that." I said, looking up at Emmett apologetically.

He brushed away my apology, and although his brow was no longer furrowed I could tell he was still worried. "You don't need to apologize for anything Bella. You can't control things like that. Are you okay though? Do you need me to get you anything else?" I shook my head. "You're first day?" He questioned awkwardly. I nodded and blushed a deep red. "I can leave if you want some peace and quiet."

"No!" I shouted, my gaze automatically snapped up to his and I shook my head. I blushed again and lowered my head in embarrassment at my outburst. "Don't go." Emmett chuckled and pulled a chair up to my desk.

"Sorry I'm late. Got a little lost on the way."

"That's fine," I said, grabbing our lunches out of the bag that I'd brought them in. "How'd you sleep?" I watched him out of the corner of my eye, looking him over and trying to see for myself how his night went.

"Alright. Been better. But been worse too." I sighed and shook my head in despair.

"What's wrong?" He questioned, opening up the container of food I placed in front of him and digging in right away.

"I know you said you'd talk to your Dad. But I feel like you're not taking this seriously enough."

"I wasn't. But that was before you and I talked yesterday. I do care Bella, but the whole point of me taking this vacation was so that I could relax and unwind before the season starts. I already feel better than when I first got here. I promise."

"Okay." I stated even though the worry still plagued my mind. Emmett placed his hand on top of mine and moved his face to look me in the eye.

"I'm being serious about this Bella. You don't have to worry about me." I rolled my eyes.

"As if you can tell a mother not to worry." He shrugged and went back to his lunch as he continued to hold my hand in his.

"How's your morning been?" I shrugged and told him about my rather uneventful morning. Emmett hung on my every word, watching me carefully the entire time as we ate our lunch in comfortable company.

Ten minutes before my lunch ended, Emmett placed a kiss on my forehead and questioned me about what time he should pick Logan up the next morning for their day out.

"How about nine? That should give me enough time to get him woken up a bit for you so you're not with a Mr. Grumpy Pants."

"That works for me. And then do you wanna meet up for late lunch early dinner when you're done?"

"That sounds great. I'll call you when I'm done and we'll go from there. How's that sound?"

"Perfect." Emmett smiled and gave me another kiss, this time to my cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow morning. Tell Logan I say 'hey'."

"Will do," I said, smiling brightly. "Dive safe and sleep well tonight."

"Will do," he said, mimicking my words. "Bye Bella."

"Bye." I whispered as I watched him walk out of my room.

The rest of the day went by at a much more satisfying pace. My classes flew by and it didn't feel like it took long at all for me to pick Logan up and then drive home. Logan's chatter filled the truck on our way home as he talked about the cupcakes they had had today because it was someone's birthday. Dinner was simple enough because I just reheated more leftovers, not wanting to make anything else until the already prepared things were finished off.

I made some popcorn for Logan and I to munch on as we watched Cars 2 and lounged on the floor in the living room. We had laid a whole bunch of blankets and pillows out as we were planning to spend the night down here. It was our way of really winding down from the week and preparing for the weekend.

Around nine o'clock, right after Logan feel asleep, I got a text from Emmett wishing me good night. I smiled and giggled girlishly and hugged my phone to my head before sending him a similar message.

That night I went to bed with a smile on my face and Logan curled into my side.


	7. Some Guy Time

**Chapter Seven**

**Emmett's POV**

**Chapter Title: Some Guy Time**

**Day: Saturday, Week Two**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations:**

** The Shimmering Veil by: Maddux (Twilight/Work in Progress)**

** Tears of Gold by: racejunkie (Twilight/Work in Progress)**

The entire time I was on my way to Bella's, I exceeded the speed limit by quite a bit, but I couldn't help it. I had to see her as soon as possible. Whenever I was around her, my body and mind automatically relaxed, as if sensing that I could be myself around her without fear of judgment, something that I should have realized earlier. And that was exactly what I needed right now. The past two nights I'd barley gotten any sleep, my mind too busy with thoughts of Bella and how amazing she is for giving me a second chance, for trying to forgive me even though I knew I'd hurt her badly. But I had to lie to her about how I was sleeping. She worried about others way more than herself and I she didn't need the extra stress of worrying over me when she had so much else on her plate.

As I passed another white and black sign with a large two and five on it, I ignored it, much like I had the others, and continued to push the gas down until I was going fifty mph. I knew that I should've been more careful, especially since the roads were winding this way and that, the light rain had just started a couple minutes ago, and a deer or other animal could jump out from the woods on either side of the street at any minute. But I just didn't care.

Until I hear the police sirens behind me, that is.

Cursing, I looked in my review mirror and saw the black and white car with red, blue, and white flashing lights on top. I pulled over to the side of the road and rested both hands on the steering wheel as my dad had taught me to do so long ago in case I was ever pulled over. I looked in my side mirror and cursed again when I saw Bella's dad protrude from the car.

_Great_, I thought to myself. _Just my luck. Now he's going to tell Bella what a big screw-up I am and she'll break things off with me for sure._ Charlie got out of his squad car and my gaze automatically rested on the gun on his belt. I closed my eyes and sighed, hoping for the best as I rolled down the window.

Charlie just looked as surprised to see me as I had been to see him, but then his eyes narrowed and I knew that this was going to take a while. My eyes quickly glanced at the clock on the dash. The achingly bright green lights read eight-ten. I'd left exceedingly early, so I had time, but I didn't really want it to be spent with Bella's dad. Charlie glared at me for a couple minutes and while I gazed back at him, I tried not to be provoking. I'd met some pretty freckin' scary people in the world of professional football between coaches and players alike, but I'd never met someone as frightening as Charlie Swan was right now.

"Get out of the car." He commanded, and stepped away from the door.

"Sir?"

"Outta the car, Cullen." Knowing better than to test his patience, I quickly unbuckled and got out, wondering where this was going. I stood casually at my full height of six feet, five inches, and normally a guy of Charlie Swan's height, about five feet, eight inches, wouldn't intimidate me. But this wasn't just and guy. This was Charlie Swan, Bella's dad and the police chief with a gun at his side. In that moment, I felt about three feet tall.

"You hurt my daughter, Cullen." So that's what this was about.

"I know I did, Sir. I didn't mean to, honestly. I had every intention of telling her who I was. I didn't expect for things to go the way they went. If I could, I go back and redo everything."

"She's my baby girl, Cullen. I don't care if you're a famous football player or not, you hurt her or my grandson again, and I will find you and I won't hesitate to hurt you."

"Yes, Sir. I understand and respect that." Charlie observed me for a moment more before turning his head to look down the road.

"I'm assuming that you were headed to my daughter and grandson."

"Yes, Sir. Logan and I are going to hang out for the day."

"Then I expect that whenever my grandson or daughter is in the car with you, you drive the speed limit and obey all traffic laws. If I hear about them dying or getting hurt in an accident because you were driving, I swear to god, Cullen, you won't be able to go anywhere in the world without me finding you. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sir." Charlie nodded his head approvingly, then looked down the road once more.

"And this conversation stays between you and me, Cullen." And with that, he walked back to his car without another word. With confused thoughts jumbling around in my head, I slowly got back into my car, wondering if this was just some joke and Charlie was testing me. But as soon as he got in his car, he turned off his lights, and turned around.

As I continued on my way to Bella's, I couldn't help but replay my interaction with Bella's dad over and over again in my head. It had probably been the weirdest conversation that I'd even had with anyone. Not because of what we were talking about, I'd had plenty of conversations with my buddies that had weirder content, but because Charlie had pulled me over for excessively speeding and he didn't give me a ticket. Instead, he gave me a talking to about hurting his daughter and godson. And he didn't even physically harm me for fucking things up with Bella. That was what had surprised me the most.

Right after Bella and I had had our disagreement, I could only think about what Jake and Bella's dad would have to say about our fight. Or more importantly, what they would _do_ about it. I knew that I wasn't exactly their favorite person in the world, and I could only hope that they wouldn't beat up on me too much otherwise going back to practice would hurt like a bitch.

I pushed thoughts about Charlie to the back of my mind, deciding to pay more attention to the roads that I still wasn't comfortable with.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

As I pulled onto Bella's street and neared her house, I noticed Logan peeking through the curtains of the front window. Right when he saw my car, I saw the curtain swish closed and the front door opened as Logan came running outside without a jacket or socks and shoes on. Logan ran up to the car door and began jumping up and down excitedly. Grinning, I parked and turned off the car before opening the door just to get charged by Logan. When he was close enough, I picked him up and settled him on my hip. I didn't see Bella yet, but I heard her voice as she called out to Logan.

"Emmy!"

"Hey Little Big Man. Where's your jacket and shoes? You're gonna catch a cold if you keep doing that."

"'Kay Emmy," he said, a smile still on his face, not put out at all. I looked up from the little boy in my arms and saw Bella standing in the doorway with a small smile on her face. "What we gonna do today, Emmy?"

"Whatever you want to do." His eyes got wide with excitement.

"Really, Emmy? Whatever I want?"

"Yep, within reason of course." I started walking towards Bella, using my free hand to take a hold of one of hers to bring it to my mouth to gently kiss. Bella blushed at the affectionate motion and looked down at her bare feet. I would have worried that she didn't like the affection, but I saw the corners of her mouth turn up into a slight smile.

"Guess what, Mommy!"

"What, babe?"

"Emmy said we can do whatever I want today!"

"That's really cool. What do you think you wanna do?" Logan shrugged in my arms and became pensive as he thought about what he wanted to occupy our time with today. "Did you have some breakfast? There's some extra eggs and bacon if you want it."

"I'm good. Thanks though. I imagine Logan wants to get going anyway." I turned to look at the still pensive boy in my arms. "You figure out what you want to do yet?"

"Can we go to the movies? 'Where the Wild Things Are' just came out. It's my most favorite book. And Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. They're both right by my bed and Mommy always reads one of them to me before nap time or bed time, and then she reads me another book too. I gots lots of bookses in my room."

"Alrighty then, I guess we're off to the movies." As soon as Logan mentioned the movies, I saw Bella's brow become furrowed as she bit her bottom lit. At first I was confused as to why she was slightly opposed to the idea, but then I realized that she must not want Logan to get filled with sugar this early in the morning. "Why don't you go get your socks, shoes, and jacket on okay?"

"'Kay, Emmy. Can you help me with my shoes?"

"Of course, Little Big Man." I set Logan down, and he scurried off and up the stairs to his room. I turned to Bella and lightly placed my hands on her jean clad hips. "I'll make sure he doesn't eat too much sugar. We'll probably just stick with popcorn anyway." Bella visibly sagged in relief and smiled sheepishly at me.

"Thanks. I'm not trying to insinuate that you won't take care of him, I just get worried about him." I looked at her curiously as I noticed that she started to get more and more flustered at the thought of having offended me. I removed my hands from her hips and cupped her face with my hands, gently picking her head up so that she would look at me.

"Bella, relax. You didn't offend me by looking out for your son." Bella nodded, but I could see her trying to force herself to relax. "Bella, look at me." She reluctantly lifted her head to look me in the eye. "You're just looking out for your son. If you hadn't mentioned it, I probably wouldn't have even thought about that. I want to be a good role model for Logan, but I've never really been around kids. I know the obvious, but I'm not good with remembering the little things. I can be a little thickheaded sometimes, but if you're willing, I'd love for you to help me learn these things." Bella smiled up at me.

"I'd be more than happy to teach you. Thank you, by the way."

"For what?"

"For everything you're doing for Logan. He has his Uncle Jake and Grandpa Charlie, but sometimes it's just not enough. He really needs some more male bonding. I try to give him all I can, but I'm not a guy so…" I nodded, understanding her completely.

"How're you feeling? Better? Worse?" She smiled a little and gratefulness shown in her eyes.

"Much better. It's just the first day that's the worst. How'd you sleep?" She questioned, bringing one of her hands up and gingerly touching the slight bags under my eyes.

"I'm fine, Bella," I responded. She huffed and rolled her eyes at me. Logan came down, his jacket handing off his shoulders, in his half-hazard attempt to put it on, and a shoe held in each hand. I let go of Bella and took Logan's shoes from him as he climbed up onto the chair. Bella turned and started cleaning up breakfast as I helped Logan slip on his shoes and tie them, reciting the steps that my mom and dad had taught me years ago.

Logan jumped off the chair and gave Bella's legs a hug before she turned and kissed the top of his head. "You be good and listen to Emmett, okay?"

"'Kay, Mommy. We gonna see you for lunch right?"

"If that's what you want to do, baby." He nodded decisively. Bella looked up at me. "Where should we meet for lunch? We can go into town, or you could come back here and I'll have something made, or if there's something else you want to do…" Bella suggested a whole bunch of ideas.

"How about you meet us at my place? I could make us something to give you a bit of a break. You remember how to get to my place?" Bella nodded her head. "How about one?" Bella nodded her head again and gave one more kiss to the top of Bella's head.

"Ready, Emmy?" Logan questioned after he kissed Bella's cheek.

"Yep," Logan declared. I stooped down to zip up his jacket and took the hand that Logan offered me.

"Let me get his car seat for you." I smiled my thanks and watched as Bella stepped into some shoes and pulled on a thick flannel that was hung up by her door. After running back to the kitchen to grab her keys from her purse, Bella joined us outside and quickly grabbed Logan's car seat and helped me transfer it into my car.

Right after I looked up the closest movie theater, Logan and I set off. Logan and I small talked most of the way. He told me more about what he liked to do and what he had put on his Christmas Wish list. For most of the duration of the trip, I let Logan do most of the talking, content with letting him take over most of the conversation. What I was most impressed with, though, was that Logan didn't _try_ to monopolize the conversation. Since I hadn't really gotten to know Logan that well, I wanted him to talk a lot, giving me time to store all the information he was giving me. Every once in a while, Logan would ask me a question and I'd supply an answer, but then he would take over the conversation again, always going into great detail when he'd talk about his friends at school or the games that he liked to play.

I leaned that Logan's favorite color was yellow, because it always made him feel happy. He didn't always like to eat his vegetables, he preferred fruit, but he always tried to eat most of them if Bella cooked them because it made her happy to see him eat all her food and Bella told him that they were good for him to grow big and tall. His best friend was named Kyle and they were in the same class together at school. He absolutely loved spending time with his family. Some of his other favorites consisted of Bella's lasagna, school, reading, cherries, sleeping in on the weekends, swinging at the park, and his teddy bear named Teddy.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

It wasn't long before we arrived at the movie theater and we walked hand-in-hand to the ticket counter where I purchased two tickets to _Where the Wild Things Are. _Logan succeeded in surprising me once again by not even asking for candy. He simply looked up at me and asked if I wanted to share a bag popcorn with him. I nodded and asked him what he wanted to drink. Logan looked up at me and asked if he would be able to get a Slushie. I nodded and pointed out the three different flavors they had. Ten minutes later, we were sitting in the empty movie theater, munching on our snacks as we waited for the movie to start.

The previews were a drag, as always, and I impatiently waited for the movie to start. Logan started sitting in the chair to my right, but right before the movie started, he stood up and stood up at me with a questioning look before lightly tapping on my thigh. It took me a minute, but I soon understood that he was asking if he could sit on my lap. Setting the popcorn bag on the chair next to us, I picked Logan up and placed him on my lap, grabbing the bag and wrapping my arms around his stomach. Logan turned around and smiled brightly at me in the dark theater before he leaned back against my shoulder.

I didn't really know the story of Max and the Wild Things, but I knew enough to know that right at the opening scene, this movie wouldn't be like the book at all. And sure enough, about ten minutes in, Max began hitting his Mom and excessive shouting ensued. My eyes widened at the act of violence, knowing instantly that that wasn't in the book at all. My attention wavered from the movie though, when I started feeling Logan shake in my arms. With furrowed brows, I moved the bag of popcorn and turned Logan in my arms, shocked when I saw tears flowing down from Logan's eyes.

"Logan, what's wrong?"

"M-M-Max is," he stammered. "Hittin' 'is Mommy. Dat's not rite." Abandoning our snacks, I secured Logan in my arms and stood up, trying to get out of that theater as quickly as possible. Rushing off to the nearest bathroom, I tried to set Logan down on the sink counter, but he wouldn't let go of my shirt that he had clutched in his tiny hands. Not even bothering to get him to let go, I picked him back up and went over to the paper towel dispenser, pulling out a handful, I then made my way back to the counter. This time I didn't even try to let go of Logan, I kept one arm wrapped around his waist and used the other to wet a couple paper towels. Making sure to keep my one arm wrapped on him, I leaned back slightly so I could see Logan's face, and started wiping off some of Logan's tears and snot that had fallen in his crying outburst.

"Logan," I whispered. "Hey, Logan, can you look up at me Little Bit Man?" Logan ignored me and continued to sob. Making sure that my one arm always touched him, I dragged it up his body so that it cupped one cheek and then I brought my other hand up to cup the other. Gently, I made Logan look up at me through his tear filled eyes. "Logan, that was just a movie. It wasn't real. It was fake. Fantasy. Not real."

"You sure?" Logan chocked out through his sobs.

"I'm sure. It's all in someone's imagination."

"So it doesn't happen at all?" he questioned innocently, wiping some of his tears off on the back of his hand.

Well, shit. What do I say? Better go with the truth, I decided. Otherwise it'll come back and bite me in the ass.

"It does happen some times, Logan," I admitted reluctantly. "And it's bad. It's not right to hit anyone. Unless you're trying to protect someone else or yourself. And it's good that you realize that, Logan."

"Why does it happen if it's bad?" he questioned.

"Because some people don't think about what they're doing, Logan."

"But Max didn't really hit his Mom. That didn't really happen. Okay?" Logan hesitated a minute, but then proceeded to nod his head in understanding. "You feelin' a bit better now?" Logan nodded again and I couldn't help but feel relieved. When I first planned to do this outing with Logan today, I never planned on having to calm down a confused and afraid boy. I didn't have a problem with it, I knew that if I wanted to be a big part in Logan's life, then there would be more times like this, but I hadn't planned on starting today. As I thought about it more though, I decided that it was probably better this way so that I knew how to handle a situation like this if it should happen in the future.

I got another paper towel wet and wiped away the aftermath of Logan's sobbing session. He sniffled a bit more and some lone tears flowed down his cheeks, but for the most part Logan was starting to calm down.

I picked Logan up again after throwing away the garbage, and we made our way back out to my car. What killed me the most, though, was that Logan still clutched onto my shirt as if it was keeping him sane. So I decided that instead of just depositing Logan into his car seat, I'd sit with him in the back seat for a couple minutes before we headed off to our next destination, whatever that was.

Logan seemed a little confused at first, when instead of putting him in his car seat, I climbed into the backseat with him. He seemed to appreciate it, though, as he curled into me and rubbed his cheek against my chest, trying to get comfortable as he leaned against me.

"Thank you, Emmy," he mumbled into my chest, and I felt my heart squeeze at his words.

"You're welcome, Logan. I'll help you any way I can, anytime." I nuzzled my nose into his curls as I held him close to me, knowing that he didn't fully understand my statement, but I knew that I should say it anyway. We stayed like that for a couple minutes before I noticed that the clock on the dash read eleven o'clock, and I started questioning Logan on what he wanted to do next.

"Do you have games at your home?" he questioned.

"No, but we can go to the store if you want and get some there. We should also probably go and pick up some stuff to make for lunch. Does that sound good to you?"

"Yeah, Emmy. Can we get this one game that I really like? I tink it's called Shoots and Laddewrs, but I can't remember fo' sure."

"Of course. We can pick up some other games and movies that you like so that I have them for when you come over to hang out with me. Sound good?"

"Yep," he responded.

"Okey dokey," I replied, moving to get Logan situated in his car seat. Logan started giggling and I knew that he was doing better. "What're you laughin' about?"

"You!" he shouted, still giggling and smiling gaily. "You said somethin' silly, Emmy! You said 'Okey dokey! It soundses funny." He giggled some more, his face starting to turn bright red.

"Yeah? You think that's funny?" I questioned, giggling along with him, still confused as to why Logan thought that what I said was so funny. I'd grown up with my grandfather and father saying it, so it wasn't strange for me to say or hear it. Obviously, Logan had never heard the saying before though, and he found it really humorous. I'd have to remember that for whenever he was feeling down. Call me crazy, but I didn't want to see Logan in such a state of distress as he had been in before. That had scared me half to death.

After I finished buckling Logan in, I questioned Logan to make sure that he was ready.

"Yep!" he replied happily.

"Alrighty then. I guess we're gonna head out."

"Okey dokey!" he shouted out, giggling happily. I smiled and laughed along with him and climbed into the driver's seat, happy that Logan had finally cheered up. Thankfully, the closest supermarket was only a couple blocks away and we were soon meandering through the aisles, looking for everything that we needed.

I hated going out to stores back home. Chicago housed thousands of people, and most of them felt the need to introduce themselves to me and ask me for my number, an autograph, or they would try to slip me their number. Especially the females. I loved my fans, I really did. I knew that I wouldn't have a career without them, but sometimes I just wanted to be able to go into Walgreens without getting swamped by clambering fans. I had no problems signing autographs for fans, but my buttons started to get pushed when they started pestering me for my number, latching onto me like we'd known each other for forever, and following me around. That's when I started to get pissed, and normally I'd just forget everything that I'd been planning on buying and leave. Sometimes my mom and Rose even helped me out a bit, which I was forever grateful for. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have such a great support system.

But Forks wasn't like Chicago. Nobody clambered over to me the second I walked in the door with Logan's smaller hand clasped in my larger one. A few stares were directed my way, but for the most part, people smiled, waved, and then went about their business. It was really refreshing, almost as refreshing as Bella treating me like a normal person instead of a famous person.

About forty-five minutes later, Logan and I walked out of the store carrying multiple bags that contained Shoots and Ladders, a deck of Uno cards, some Go Fish! cards, a children's version of Monopoly, a stuffed dog and bear, a Magic School Bus DVD, a Banana Man CD, a couple picture books, a box of Legos, some trucks, chips and dip, and the makings for tacos.

As we put all the bags in the trunk, I remembered to take out the Banana Man CD for Logan to listen to on the way back to my place. During the drive, Logan sang along with all the songs as he danced and wiggled in his car seat with his bear and dog, saying "thank you for my toys, Emmy" in between almost every single song.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

We made it back to my place with about twenty minutes till Bella would come. Once I unbuckled Logan and helped him down, he came to the trunk to help me haul in our bundle. As I stood on the stoop, and searched for my keys in my pocket, I noticed that Logan was no longer next to me, and I turned around frantically, wondering where he wandered off to.

Logan, it turned out, hadn't wandered off at all. He stood a couple feet from the car, staring in awe and the house that I was renting for my vacation. "What's wrong, Logan?" I questioned. Logan continued to admire the house, and it took him a minute before he answered me.

"You gotses a big house, Emmy!" he exclaimed. I chuckled and set down the bags, walking over to Logan and crouching down next to him.

"It is kinda big, isn't it?"

Logan nodded, his eyes still wide and his mouth still open. "It's the biggest one I ever seen!"

"You wanna see what the inside looks like?" Logan nodded his head vigorously and a big smile became apparent on his youthful face. I grabbed Logan's free hand and walked up to the door with him. I unlocked the door with my free hand and ushered him in before I grabbed the deserted bags. When I walked into my temporary residence, I saw that Logan had dropped the bags to the floor almost as soon as he walked in and he was spinning around the room, trying to take everything in at once. "Be careful, little buddy. Don't want you getting dizzy." Logan paused a minute and swayed back and forth slowly before he grinned again.

"You have a cool house, Emmy!"

"It is pretty cool. You can go take a look around if you want, see the other rooms." Logan bit his lip and looked hesitant.

"Can I bring Shoots and Ladders with me?"

"Who are they?"

"My bear is Shoots and my doggie is Ladders. I named them on the way here," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Of course you can bring them with you. I'll be in the kitchen starting lunch, okay. You come get me if you need me." I started to head off to the kitchen before Logan caught up with me and pulled on my shirt. I turned around to find his left arm clutching Shoots and Ladders and his right hand was still clutching my shirt.

"You're not gonna leave me, right?" My brows furrowed, wondering what had made him ask that question.

"No, Little Big Man. I'll be right here, in the kitchen, browning the meat. You don't have to go look around if you don't want to. You can wait for me and I'll go with you later. Maybe after lunch Mommy would want to take a look with us."

"Like a 'venture?" His eyes grew wide with excitement and he started bouncing because he was so eager.

"Yeah, it could be like an adventure."

"Then I wait for Mommy. She likes 'ventures. Can Shoots, Ladders, and I help you get lunch ready?"

"Of course you can. Do you wanna get the other bags and bring them in here for me?" Logan nodded and ran off.

I placed all the grocery bags on the table and started unloading and organizing everything. Logan came back a couple minutes later and heaved the rest of the bags onto the table. "Why don't you go put Shoots and Ladders up there on the counter so that they don't get dirty, okay? They can look out for your Mom and tell us when she gets here." Logan nodded and dragged a chair over to the counter so that he'd be able to reach. He set them as close to the wall as possible and had them sitting side-by-side. As I was watching over the browning meat and tearing apart some lettuce, I overheard him talking softly to Shoots and Ladders, informing them of what their duties were and how important their job was.

By the time Logan finished talking to his new friends, I had the lettuce cleaned and in a bowl, the tomatoes chopped up and in a bowl, and I was just about to start putting the cheese into a bowl. "I'm ready to help, Emmy," he declared.

"Alright," I said, and moved the cheese and bowl over to the table. "Why don't you take all your games and toys and put them in the living room. That way they're out of our way. And then you want to pour the cheese into this bowl." Logan nodded and made three trips into the living room before he came back and climbed up onto a chair. "Don't pour too much in and try not to spill any." I said, and went to stir the meat. I got out the hard and soft shell taco shells, four plates, three cups, the chips and salsa, and enough spoons to fill all the bowls.

"Done, Emmy!" I moved to stand behind Logan and praised his work.

"Good job Logan. Do you want to put the taco shells on this plate?" I questioned, moving the bowl of cheese away from him and placing one of the plates and the two things of shells in front of him. He got to work quickly and I started bringing over the other bowls of food to the table. Logan finished arranging the shells and then proceeded to throw away all the wrappings. We worked together to set the table and Logan helped me pour the meat into its bowl before he set that on the table as well.

"What do you want to drink, Emmy?"

"I think I'll just get some water. Why don't you go to the fridge and see what you want to drink." He struggled to get out the gallon of chocolate milk that I had got the first night I was here and looked up at me questioningly. "You can have that. Why don't you let me pour it though, that way we don't spill."

"Okay, Emmy." I poured his drink as he watched and then returned the gallon to the fridge. I turned to admire our handiwork with Logan by my side. "What do we do now?" he questioned.

"Well," I started. "We could open up some of your games if you wanted to play with them until your Mom gets here." Just as I finished my sentence, we hear a car door slam and Logan's eyes filled with delight.

"Mommy!" he shouted out, and bounded to the door. Logan pulled it open to reveal a surprised Bella standing on the other side. "Mommy!" he called our again and encased her legs in a hug.

"Hi, baby," she responded with a bright, beautiful smile, and bent down to return his hug and kiss his hair. "Did you have fun with Emmett?" Logan nodded and let go of Bella's legs before he grabbed onto her hand and pulled her in the house. I leaned against the wall and watched from afar as I enjoyed seeing the two interact. "Emmy and I went to the store to get lunch and he got me a whole bunch of toys." Logan sat down on the carpet and showed off his toys.

After Logan said that, Bella looked at me for the first time since arriving, and there was something that changed in her expression that set some of my mental alarms off. I had done something, something that she didn't really like. While Bella didn't look pissed, her expression was more guarded and her beautiful brown eyes were quiet and sad and her smile was slightly forced. I wanted to question her about what had upset her right then, but I knew that it wasn't the time. Later, when Logan wasn't around.

"You hungry? Logan and I got stuff for tacos." I questioned. Bella nodded and stood, bringing a reluctant Logan up with her.

"We'll look at your toys again after lunch, babe. But only for a little while because you need to take a nap." Logan pouted a little but after a last glance at his toys, he followed Bella and I into the kitchen.

Lunch conversation was mainly dominated by Logan and I couldn't help but feel disappointed that I couldn't ask Bella what was wrong, even though I knew that even if Logan wasn't talking I still wouldn't be able to question Bella. Logan showed off Shoots and Ladders and told her about our possible adventure and how bad the movie was and she consoled him much like I had, but other than that, Bella and I didn't really get a good chance to talk. I noticed that she would look at me when she thought I wasn't paying attention and I when I caught her, she smiled shyly and blushed before ducking her head and putting her attention back on Logan. So she wasn't mad at me, but something was definitely bothering her.

Once everyone had finished eating, Logan wanted Bella and I come into the living room with him so we could play with his new toys. Bella started cleaning up and I decided that I should ask her about what was going on between us.

"Hey, Logan, why don't you go into the living room and play with your toys for a bit. Your Mommy and I are going to clean up lunch and then we'll be in to play with you, okay?" Logan nodded and scurried off with Shoots and Ladders in tow.

"What's wrong, Bella?" I questioned softly as I moved to stand next to her as she rinsed some dished before putting them in the dish washer. "Bella, talk to me. What's wrong? Did I do something? Did I not do something that I was supposed to?" Bella shrugged her shoulders concomitantly. Even more worried now, I turned off the water and grabbed Bella's hands to prevent her from grabbing another bowl. We had just worked things out; I didn't want them to be like this again.

"Bella, talk to me. Tell me what's bothering you. I can't try to fix what's wrong unless you talk to me."

"We'll talk later, Emmett. Right now, my son's waiting in the other room and I need to lay him down for his nap soon, otherwise he'll crash early tonight and be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning."

I sighed in defeat, knowing that I couldn't push her too much in our very new relationship and nothing would be accomplished if I continued questioning her because then we'd both probably get frustrated. I helped Bella clean up the rest of our meal in silence and then both of us headed into the living room to play with Logan for a little while. The sight that greeted us was one that I hadn't expected, but probably should have.

Logan was curled up in a ball next to his toys, holding Shoots and Ladders closely to his chest.

Bella and I stood next to each other as we watched his stomach rise and fall with his steady breathing. "Let me put him in my bed upstairs, then we can talk. And we need to talk, Bella. I don't know what happened from the time I saw you this morning to now, but I want to know what's bothering you and I want to be able to fix it if I can. We just worked things out. Talk to me and let me help, Bella." I pleaded with her, hoping that she would agree and we could fix whatever it was that was bothering her.

"Okay," she whispered, and I mentally jumped for joy.

"I'll be right back; I'm just going to put him up in my room." I crouched down to pick Logan up in my arms. He mumbled and turned a little bit, but he never relinquished his firm grip on Shoots and Ladders as I carried him up the stairs and down the hall into my room. I set him down on my bed and he curled back into his tight ball. Smiling, I pulled the blankets over him and brushed a curl from his forehead.

I made my way back downstairs, anxious to talk to Bella. She was sitting on the couch, curled under one of the many blankets that were in a wicker basket in the corner. She didn't look up at my entrance into the room even though I knew she heard me. Instead, her gaze rested on Logan's small pile of toys.

I remained silent as I sat next to her and wrapped my arm around her, encouraging her to lean into me. Despite her demeanor, she came willingly and she rested her head on my shoulder. Elation filled me at her action. That had to mean something, right? If she wanted to break things off between us, she wouldn't be leaning into me, she would be trying to put as much space between us as possible. Using my fingertips, I softly traced relaxing patterns on her arm and shoulder, the action helping me gather my thoughts.

"What's wrong, Bella? Talk to me."

Bella sighed softly and snuggled into me more. "I'm wondering what's going to happen when you leave us." Yeah, I'd been thinking about that lately too. I couldn't exactly drive over here every night, and during the season I would be busy with games and practices and staying focused. "Logan's been spending a lot of time with you and it's obvious that you're becoming a part of his life. I don't know how Logan… or I are going to handle it." I squeezed her tighter.

"I'm not really sure either. I've never done a long distance relationship before. But I want to try; I'm going to try hard to make it work. Because I want that Bella, I want this… whatever it is that you and I have between us, to work out. Even though I've only known you and Logan for a couple days. Will you try with me Bella? Please say you will," I begged her.

"I'll try," she whispered after a minute's silence. "Will you call?" Her voice sounded so broken and lost that I couldn't help but do everything in my power to reassure her.

"Every day. Morning, noon, and night. I'll call you every morning and night and I'll email, text, and mail you every day. You won't be able to get rid of me. You'll hear from me so much, you'll get sick of me. I promise." That made her giggle softly and I smiled when I felt some of the sadness leave the room. "And maybe you could come up and visit me." I don't know what made me say it, but I really liked the idea of Bella and Logan coming to see me in Chicago and sharing my house with them. They could meet my family, and I'd show them all the best attractions. We could go to Navy Pier, all the museums, if the time was right, the Kris Kringle mart in the Daily Plaza, and I was sure Logan would love a water taxi ride.

"We'll make this work, Bella." I retracted my arm from her shoulders and stood up, holding my hand out to Bella. She looked at me curiously but took my hand and let the blanket drop to the floor. I placed my hands on Bella's hips and leaned down slightly to rest my forehead against hers. Bella's breath tickled my face as we stood there together for who knows how long. Bella's hands eventually left her sides and she hooked them behind my neck.

I opened my eyes and was surprised when I looked into Bella's beautiful brown eyes. I had noticed their beauty and uniqueness the very first time I saw her. They were warm and bright and full of life, like warm milk chocolate that had melted in the sun on a hot summer's day. But now I could see so much more. There were some flecks of a lighter color splashed here and there among the chocolate and I could see her passion for life brighten her eyes up even more. She was breathtaking.

"Bella," I whispered, almost resenting the fact that I had just broke the peaceful silence. "Can I kiss you?" Bella looked taken aback at first, but then a blush painted her cheeks and she looked down at our feet as some of her hair cascaded over her shoulder and obscured her face from me even more. "Hey," I whispered, and let go of one of her hips to tuck her hair behind her ear and then I picked her chin up, letting me see her expressive chocolate pools again.

From her reaction, I was worried that I had pushed things too fast and I was about to open my mouth to apologize when Bella suddenly nodded her head. Elation filled me and I slowly moved my lips closer to hers until they touched.

The kiss was chaste, but just that kiss made me feel more alive than any of the other, more passionate, kisses I'd ever had. Probably because Bella actually mattered to me. When we parted, I knew that I wore the goofiest grin ever. Bella smiled back at me and I knew right then that our relationship would work out. It had to.

Because if it didn't, I didn't know what I'd do.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

Letting go of Bella, I dropped down to the floor and lay down, leaning my back against the bottom of the couch. Patting the spot on the floor next to me, I invited Bella to join me. Without any hesitation, she quickly plopped down in front of me. Originally, I had wanted Bella to face me so that I could look at her some more, but Bella had other ideas. Bella pressed her back against my chest and moved to fit the contours of my body. _Oh, yeah._ This was much better.

I grabbed the previously forgotten blanket and draped it over Bella's body, intent on making sure she didn't get cold. Bella snuggled deeper into my chest and turned to make sure that the blanket covered me as well. I placed a kiss on her hairline and draped my arm around her waist, using the other as a pillow for my head as I closed my eyes and just enjoyed and savored the feel of Bella in my arms.

"Emmett?"

"Yeah," I mumbled

"When do you have to leave to go back home?"

My eyes remained closed and I pulled Bella closer to me, not wanting to be reminded that I'd have to leave her and Logan soon. "Next Saturday. I have a nine o'clock plane." I felt Bella's head move against me as she took in the new information. "I won't be able to come and visit much either. I'll be busy with practices and games. I wish I'd be able to take some time off, but my job isn't really flexible that way. We start practicing on Monday."

"Promise me something," she questioned in a timid voice.

"Anything," I swore.

"Promise me that you won't forget about me and Logan." I couldn't see her face, but I had a feeling that her eyes were downcast and she was biting her lip. I pushed myself up onto my hand and rolled Bella over so that I was looking down upon her beautiful face and eyes.

"What makes you think that I could?" Instead of getting an answer, Bella shrugged off my question.

"Just promise me," she pleaded. My brow furrowed, as I realized that there was a lot more to Bella's question than she was letting on. Probably fears from when Dickward had left her.

"I promise that I won't forget you or Logan. How's that?"

"Perfect." she whispered sadly.

"What's wrong Bella? Why are you so sad?" She shook her head and instead pulled on my arm, trying to get me to lay back down with her, and when I did, she placed her head on my chest and started drawing little patterns over my chest.

We talked quietly as we learned more about each other. About forty-five minutes later, Logan sleepily descended the stairs with Shoots and Ladders and came to curl up in between Bella and I as he started to wake up from his nap. Only about a half hour later, he was demanding that we all go to the park and play Hot Lava Monster, tag, and Hide-and-Seek. Deciding that that sounded like a pretty good idea, we all bundled up and climbed in my rental as Bella drove us to the nearest park.

We played for almost three hours before Bella insisted that it was time to start thinking about dinner. So we headed back to my place and made homemade pizza, but not before our flour fight. After dinner was cleaned up, Logan pestered Bella about staying the night with me, which I wasn't opposed to as long as Bella was cool with it. Which, after a couple minutes of convincing, she was. We colored and played some of Logan's new games before Bella decided that it was time she should head home. I wanted to ask her to spend the night, but something told me that that would be out of the question. As Logan was changing into the shirt I gave him to sleep in and brushing his teeth with an extra toothbrush, I pulled Bella close to me and kissed her lips softly, unable to do anymore because Logan came back into the room only seconds later.

Logan and I both said "bye" to Bella, and we made arrangements to meet in Port Angeles for breakfast at nine the next morning. After Bella left, Logan and I played a couple more games, made some popcorn, and watched a couple of the Magic School Bus episodes before he was ready to call it a night. I held his hand as we made our way up the stairs and headed in to my room. Logan climbed into the bed and waited for me while I got ready for bed. He was knocked out by the time I got back, and I couldn't help by chuckle and smile at his serene face. I turned out the light climbed into bed, sound asleep with a smile still on my face within seconds.


	8. Sunday Happenings

**Chapter Eight**

**Bella's POV**

**Chapter Title:**

**Day: Sunday, Week Two**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations: **

** A Pound of Flesh by: jaxon22 (Twilight/Work in Progress)**

** Calm Before the Storm by: House Elf Educator (Harry Potter/ Work in Progress)**

**Joke:**

** So it was a really nice day out and I decided to take my boat out on the lake, but I had some work to do so I brought my Dell computer along. While I was out on the lake, I set my computer on the edge of the boat and it fell in. So now, there's a Dell rolling in the deep.**

**Get it? A Dell rolling in the deep = Adele who sings Rolling in the Deep. (Note: I did not make this up.)**

I groggily woke to the blaring of my alarm clock. I groaned and slammed my hand down on the _Off_ button. Silence quickly followed and I sighed as I sunk back into my bed, pulling the blankets higher up on my body. I really didn't want to get up, but the realization that the sooner I got ready, the sooner I could see my baby boy and Emmett. And that was all the motivation I needed.

Twenty minutes later I was out the door and on my way to Emmett's, a big ol' grin of anticipation upon my face. Normally the long distance drives that came with living in Forks didn't bother me, but today they did. I couldn't get there fast enough. But being the Police Chief's daughter, I made sure that I followed all the traffic laws.

I got to Emmett's and made my way up to the front door when I heard loud peals of laughter protruding from the house. With a raised eyebrow, I knocked on the door and came in when I heard Emmett's booming voice yell out that it was open. I opened the door and cautiously walked in, anxious about the sight that I might behold.

Upon entering Emmett's home, I didn't see the two guys in the living room or kitchen. I was about to call out for them when I hear Logan shout "don't let him get away". A smile formed on my face as I wondered what game the two were playing. The smile, however, disappeared when I heard something bark and shake and four little paws scamper across the floor.

A sopping wet and soapy puppy charged into the room, it's long ears flopping in the wind behind it and it's tail wagging a mile a minute. Before I could fully comprehend that the dog was headed right at me, it started jumping up and down and pawing at my legs, begging for attention. My eyes flashed up to see an even wetter Logan and Emmett enter the room, the latter wearing a sheepish grin. "What is going on?" I asked incredulously, pointing down to the dog that had now lost interest in me and was wrestling on the floor with Logan. "Where did that dog come from?"

Emmett walked over to me, one hand nervously scratching the back of his neck. "Well, ya see. That's kind of a funny story." I glared at Emmett's obvious beating around the bush. "This morning when I went into the kitchen to make breakfast, this little guy was curled up on the porch shivering. It had rained really bad last night and it was still raining this morning when I found him, so I got a couple towels and wrapped him up and brought him inside. After I dried him off, I gave him some food and water when Logan came in and we all started playing together when Logan proposed that we give him a bath and well… that's kind of been a bit of an adventure." My grim expression loosened a little when I saw some of the bubbles in Emmett's hair.

"Did he have a collar when you brought him in?"

Emmett solemnly shook his head. "That was the first thing I looked for. He didn't look like he'd been fed in a little while either." My heart constricted as I saw the poor innocent puppy playing with my son.

"I don't think I can take on a dog right now, Emmett. I can't stay home all day and potty train him and be with him and it wouldn't be fair to just leave him in a create all day long until I got back from work. But Logan's already in love with him," I said in hushed tones as I moved closer to Emmett. We both looked upon Logan and the puppy, who were still rolling around on the floor.

"What if I worked with him a bit. Got him potty trained and started teaching him commands and getting him acquainted with your place during the day. I could stay with him while you were at work."

"And when you leave?" I questioned, looking up at the man before me. "What am I supposed to do then?" Emmett looked down at me with concern in his eyes, realizing that I was talking about more than just the dog.

Emmett pulled me into his arms and I didn't resist despite him being soaking wet. "I'm not one hundred percent sure, Bella. But we'll figure it out." Emmett paused and placed a kiss on top of my head. "He's really cute, though, and he's a funny little guy." I smiled into Emmett's chest. It was obvious that the dog had hooked someone else besides my son.

"I suppose we could keep him. After we check with my dad to make sure no one reported him missing."

Logan must have heard my words because the next thing I knew, was that he had stopped playing with the dog, looked up at me with a bright smile upon his face, and then he charged me, hugging my legs tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, Mommy! I know that he's not someone else's puppy. He can't be because he's ours!" I couldn't help but smile at the infectious tone in my son's voice as he jumped up and down, getting the puppy even more riled up than before.

"I guess this means we'll have to set up a vet appointment and make our way into town to the pet store today." Logan started running around the room, the dog following behind him. "After we get that puppy nice and clean." The puppy stopped running and looked up at me, a mischievous grin on his face. "Don't even think about causing any trouble, mister," I warned the dog in my no-nonsense tone. The dog dropped the grin and plopped down on the floor, resting his head on his paws and looked up at me with a puppy dog pout. "That's not going to work on me, dude. Let's go," I said, patting my hand against my thigh and whistling softly. The dog's ears perked up and he trotted over to me.

Re-washing the dog took about another ten minutes after I got him to stand in the tub and relax. But I honestly think that Logan, Emmett, and I got the wettest throughout the whole ordeal. I went out to the truck to grab the change of clothes I brought along for Logan and Emmett lent me some sweats and a t-shirt while mine where in the dryer. Emmett changed into some dry clothes and then began making some French Toast for breakfast.

We laughed and played and just had a good time throughout the meal. And I don't think I'd felt that lighthearted in a long time.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

After we finished breakfast, we piled into Emmett's car and Logan held the squirming puppy in his lap as we headed off to the nearest pet store. "So what are you gonna name the puppy, Logan?" Emmett questioned and looked in the review mirror at my son.

"His name's gonna be Dufus," Logan declared. Emmett and I shared a look at the unusual name, but shrugged our shoulders and remained silent as Logan told Dufus all the games they were going to play together.

It wasn't long before we made it to the pet store and Logan carried a jittery Dufus into the store with excited eyes. Right away, I guided him over to the leashes and collars first and Logan picked out a matching blue set. Food, bowls, and treats were next on our list, shortly followed by a bed, create, and toys. The latter was definitely Dufus's favorite as he took in all the different play things and tried to escape Logan's arms when he wanted to play with them.

About an hour later, Logan walked Dufus out with his new collar and leash on and Emmett and I held hands, each of us carrying a handful of bags with our purchases and the name of a good local vet.

"Don't forget that Uncle Seth and Jake are going to pick you up later today to go to the beach," I reminded Logan as we headed back to Emmett's to get my truck so Logan and I could go home and start "puppy-proofing" the house and getting Dufus acquainted with his new home.

"Okay. Do you think we can bring Dufus with us? I wanna play in the water with him."

"You'll have to ask Uncle Seth and Jake and see what they say. If you take him with you, though, you need to make sure you watch him carefully."

"I know, Mommy," he replied and went back to scratching behind Dufus's ears as the puppy dozed on his lap.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

When we arrived at Emmett's, he grabbed all the bags and placed them in the bed of my truck while I transferred Logan's car seat back to my truck and helped Logan get in and resituate Dufus on his lap in the blanket. I felt Emmett standing behind and when I turned to close Logan's door, I came face-to-face with Emmett's chest. Stumbling back, Emmett placed his hands on my hips to help steady me as he brought me closer to him.

"Hey," he whispered, looking deeply into my eyes.

"Hey," I whispered back breathlessly, smiling slightly at the feeling that filled me due to our close proximity. Emmett wrapped his hands around my back and leaned his forehead against mine.

"So will I see you again today? Possibly just us?" he asked hopefully.

"I think we might be able to arrange that. I have to grade some papers and clean a little bit, but Seth and Jake are coming for Logan a little before three, but you could come over after that if you wanted. I could make us some dinner and we could watch a movie."

"Would there be cuddling involved during the movie watching?" he questioned with narrowed eyes. As if cuddling was a deal breaker.

My eyes alighted with amusement. "I suppose we can work some cuddling in there."

"And kissing?" His eyes narrowed even further.

"There better be some kissing," I whispered softly, not believing myself for being so forward. I'd never been this way before. But then again, no one had ever affected me like Emmett did.

Emmett grinned triumphantly and placed a gentle kiss on my cheek, his lips remaining on my skin for a minute after. "Perfect. So I'll see you around four-thirtyish?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Can't wait." And he placed another kiss to my forehead before he backed away and watched as I got in the truck and drove out of sight.

**-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-**

When we got back home, I had Logan hold on to Dufus and sit on the couch while I started puppy-proofing the house. There wasn't much to do, since everything was pretty much child-proof already, but I didn't want to ever come home to find something torn to shreds or broken because I was careless and left something out.

Ten minutes later, Logan gave Dufus a tour of the house and let him roam on his own to get a feel for his surroundings while I started unloading and putting away all of Dufus's things. By the time I had finished that and grabbed my papers from my desk to grade in the kitchen, Logan and Dufus had meandered back into the living room and were rotating between playing with a tug-of-war rope and a squeaky ball. Logan's laughter and Dufus's quiet barks of excitement flowed into the kitchen and made grading papers go by a lot quicker.

Almost too quickly.

I was about to go into the living room and play with Logan and Dufus when I heard a knock at the door and Jake and Seth's booming voices calling out to us as they entered. Dufus's ears perked up and he ran to the door, eager to sniff and meet the new people.

"Who is this little guy?" Jake asked as him and Seth knelt down to scratch behind the puppy's ears and let Dufus sniff them.

"He's my puppy!" Logan exclaimed. Already familiar with Logan's voice, Dufus's ears perked up again at the sound of my son's voice and he went back over to Logan's side and sat, waiting for Logan to pet him again. "His name's Dufus, and we're already best friends," Logan stated matter-of-factly. "Can we bring him with us when we go to the beach Unka Jake and Unka Seth? I'll watch him real careful and make sure he doesn't get away." Logan swore seriously, picking up Dufus and holding him close to his chest. I couldn't help but smile at the picture Logan and Dufus made as they looked at Jake and Seth with matching puppy dog pouts.

"Well, I suppose Dufus can come, but we need to get a hug from a little boy named Logan first. Otherwise I'm afraid we won't be able to go anywhere."

"Oh! Oh! Oh! I'm a little boy named Logan. If I give you a hug then can Dufus come with us to the beach?" Logan cried out, jumping up and down excitedly and waving his hand high in the air, causing Dufus to drop to the floor.

Jake and Seth shared a look and shrugged their shoulders, trying hard not to laugh at the sight Logan made. "I guess…" Jake said, drawing out his answer for maximum suspense.

"Yay!" Logan shouted and he ran over to his Uncles and wrapped his arms around their legs. Not quite sure what was going on, but not wanting to be left out of the action, Dufus started imitating Logan by jumping up and down and standing up on his hind legs to paw at Seth and Jake's legs, almost like he was trying to give them a hug too.

"Logan, why don't you go get Dufus's leash and a plastic bag for if he goes poo," I suggested. "You should probably get your shoes and coat on as well."

"'Kay Mommy," he chirped, and then went off, Dufus following in his wake.

"I thought you didn't want a dog, Bells."

"I didn't, Seth. But Logan slept over at Emmett's last night and Dufus was there when they woke up. Emmett already checked him over and it seems like he was abandoned. Logan had already bonded with him and he's just so cute that I guess I couldn't resist. I'm still going to call Charlie, though, and make sure nobody's missing him. It's horrible to say, but I kind of hope he was abandoned because I don't know what I'll tell Logan if it turns out he does have an owner. He already seems like part of the family and I think he'll be good for Logan." Jake and Seth nodded their agreement.

"If you ever need someone to watch Dufus, just give me a call. Seems like he'll be a good dog."

"Thanks, Jake. I really appreciate it." Further conversation was put on hold because Logan came into the room with Dufus following closely behind.

"Ready Unka Jake and Unka Seth?"

"Yep," Jake replied, taking Dufus's leash from him while Logan came over to me. We shared I love yous and hugs and kisses and then they were off.

Just as I was about to go upstairs to put all my papers away, the phone rang in the kitchen and I hurried to answer it before the answering machine picked up. Unfortunately I was too late and instead I waited for the person to leave a voicemail to see who to call back.

The voice over the machine sent a shiver over my spine and my heart racing.

"I know what you did, Isabella. I know you kept him from me. And mark my words, I will get my son back."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

**Emmett's POV**

**Chapter Title: Reconstruction**

**Day: Sunday, Week Two**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot.**

**Story Recommendations:**

** Crashing Head On By: HopelessRomantic79 (Twilight/Complete)**

** Consent to Release By: HopelessRomantic79 (Twilight/Complete)**

**AN: Sorry this is so short, but this is what I have right now. I should have some more up soon.**

As I stood on Bella's stoop, I debated on whether or not I should just walk in or knock. On one hand, she was expecting me to come at this time, but on the other, I didn't want to catch her at a bad time. Decisions, decisions…

While I internally deliberated on what to do, I paused for a minute and listened closer when I thought I heard a sound of distress coming from inside the house. "Bella!" I called out and knocked at the same time. "Bella, I'm coming in!" The doorknob turned easily under my hand and I rushed into the house. The farther into the house I got, the louder the sounds became until I realized that it was someone, probably Bella, crying hysterically. I followed the sounds up the stairs to Logan's room.

Looking through the open door, I found Bella curled up in the fetal position on Logan's bed, clutching Teddy to her chest tightly. "Bella," I breathed out, worried that she was hurt some way. Running into the room,I knelt beside the bed and ran my hands over Bella's form, looking for any blood or injuries. When I found nothing, I picked Bella up in my arms and sat on the bed, situating her in my lap. I cradled her neck in my hand and brought her face into my shoulder, burying my face in her hair and breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo.

"What's wrong, baby? Tell me so that I can fix it," I pleaded with her. But Bella shook her head and I worried that she was going to push me out again. I couldn't let her do that. I had to make her see reason. "Let me in, Bella. I want to help you. Let me help you. You don't need to do everything by yourself anymore; there are people who want to help you. Let us. Let me."

"Y-y-you _can't_ fix it, Emmett! No one can!"

"Why don't you tell me anyway? Don't hold all this in Bella. You have so much on your shoulders. Let me help you. Let my take some of the stress for you. I want to. I want to make things better for you. But you need to tell me what's going on so that I can try and fix it or make it better."

Bella hiccupped again and she sobbed into my shirt some more before she finally answered me. "I got a call from Logan's father today. He said that he knows about Logan. He knows that I kept Logan from him and that he's going to try to take him from me. I never got him to sign over his parental rights. I haven't seen him since that night. I didn't want to see him again." I took in a shuddering breath and wrapped my arms tighter around Bella. Even though I already knew the story, I asked Bella to relay it to me, faking cluelessness.

I buried my face in Bella's hair and breathed in the scent of her shampoo as I tried to keep calm as I heard

"I promise you, Bella. I won't let him get to you or Logan. I'll protect you two if it's the last thing I do."

"You can't stay here, Emmett. Your season starts soon and you live in Chicago." As much as I hated to admit it, she was right. Coach wouldn't be too pleased with me if I didn't make it back in time for practices. And mom and dad would start to get suspicious. I knew that my abrupt vacation had surprised, and although they weren't nosey by nature, if they suspected that there was something going on that was bothering me, they would butt in and try to help me. And no matter how irritating I found that to be, I couldn't help but love my parents even more for it. Because even though I was living by myself and I had my own job, they still fought tooth and nail to protect me and I knew that they would always have the light on and door open for me at home.

"I'll figure out something. _We'll_ figure something out." I promised, knowing that Bella wouldn't take it lightly if someone tried to control all her decisions.

Bella turned her head to look me in the eye. She had stopped crying, but her eyes were still puffy and red and her tears stained her cheeks. "You mean that?"

"I mean it. You and I will work something out, Bella." Bella's eyes welled up with tears again and she sobbed as she threw her arms around my neck and pulled me impossibly closer to her.

"Thank you, Emmett," she whispered. I smile and brought a hand to her cheek and brushed away her tears with my thumb.

"Why don't you go take a nice warm shower and relax and I'll fix up some tea for you and then we'll curl up on the couch and snuggle and have a hot make-out session. How's that sound?" I waggled my eyebrows suggestively and grinned like a mischievous little boy. My actions had the desired effect and Bella smiled and giggled at my antics. Her laughter brightened up the room and the dark that had been surrounding us, and slowly suffocating us, was pushed away.

I pressed one last kiss on Bella's lips before I pulled away and climbed out of her bed. Holding my hand out to Bella, I waited until she wrapped her small fingers around mine and pulled her up off the bed. Instead of letting my hand go, though, Bella pulled on my hand, urging me to follow her to what I assumed was the master bath. Not quite sure what was going on, but going with it, I grabbed her free hand in mine and proceeded to crowd into her space until her back bumped gently into the door. Leaning in close, I nuzzled my nose against the soft skin of her cheek, loving the wisps of her breath across my ear. I pulled back slightly and found that Bella's eye color had darkened considerably with desire.

"I want you to relax in the shower for at least two hours," Bella's mouth gaped open at my request and she started to protest but I silenced her with a look that dared her to object.

"But what am I supposed to do for _two_ hours, Emmett?" I shrugged, not really caring what she did as long as she wasn't working herself up over _His_ call.

"I don't know. Soak in the tub, paint your nails, shave… What do you normally do?"

Bella glared at me. "I don't normally take two hour showers, Emmett! If I did I'd look like a prune! Not to mention my water bill would be through the roof."

"Ah, but you'd be the sexiest prune around," I countered and leaned forward to pepper kisses on the exposed skin of her neck. "You know you want to, Bella," I whispered enticingly against her neck.

"Well, yes, but…" she stammered, and I grinned internally knowing that I just about had her won over.

"But nothing, Bella." I pulled back and looked at the beautiful, strong woman standing in front of me. "There's nothing you need to do that can't wait for a while. I want you to take some Bella Time. You _need_ to have some Bella Time." Bella nodded her head meekly and I placed a final kiss on the corner of her mouth. "See you in a bit." I dropped her hand and made my way downstairs to give Bella her privacy.

I was halfway downstairs when my stomach clenched and proceeded to let out an obnoxious growl. "Alright big guy, I'll get you something to eat." I told my stomach, and patted it soothingly, hoping it would settle down. After looking through Bella's kitchen and finding her cabinets and fridge almost empty, I decided that, even though it wasn't anything special, you couldn't go wrong with a PB and J sandwich. My stomach growled again and although I wanted to wait for Bella to come back downstairs, I couldn't help but eat two sandwiches to placate my stomach for a little while. As I grabbed the raspberry lemonade mix from the cabinet, I found some candles hidden in the back. I smiled as a full proof plan to get Bella to relax came to mind.

Two hours passed before I knew it and as I was putting the finishing touches on dinner, I heard Bella gasp from the doorway. "Emmett," she breathed out. "You didn't' have to do all this." I shook my head and held my and out to her. Bella slowly stepped into the darkened room where the flickering flames shed light on her features. She was dressed in purple plaid sleep pants and a form fitting white tank top, sans bra.

_Oh, boy._


	10. One Step at a Time

**Chapter Ten**

**Bella's POV**

**Chapter Title: One Step at a Time**

**Day: Sunday, Week Two**

**Disclaimer: I only own Logan and the plot**

**Story Recommendations:**

** Do Over by: TKegl (Twilight/Complete)**

** Eros & Psyche by: RZZMG (Harry Potter/WIP)**

"Thank you for doing all this, Emmett. I really appreciate it," I said, still amazed by the atmosphere he had created in such a short time. All the overhead lights were turned off, lit candles were scattered on every available surface, a warm fire crackled, and a mug of my favorite tea sat on the coffee table next to two plates full of what looked like PB & J sandwiches.

"It's really nothing extraordinary," he protested as he steered me over to the couch and encouraged me to sit down, wrapping a blanket around my shoulders. "I don't know what you like and I figured you couldn't go wrong with PB & J, so that's what I made. Other than that, it's just some strategically placed candles. I really don't see what you're making a big deal about." Emmett stood in front of me and placed a gentle kiss to the top of my head.

"It's perfect because of the thought that you put into it." Emmett smiled and started walking to the other side of the couch, which, right now, seemed a million miles away. Before he got too far away, I reached out and wrapped my hand around his wrist and gently tugged. Emmett's worried gaze swept over me.

"Is something wrong?"

I nodded and glared at the spot where I knew he had intended on sitting. "That's too far away." I gently tugged on his wrist again and patted the spot next to me. Emmett shook his head in disbelief and smiled as he came and sat down next to me. He handed me a sandwich and I leaned against his shoulder while I chewed thoughtfully. I ended up getting displaced when Emmett reached forward for two more sandwiches and his glass of milk, but then he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me in close to him again. After finishing my sandwich, I wrapped my hands around the warm mug of tea, the heat instantly spreading warmth over my body. "So tell me more about yourself. Stuff that not a lot of people know."

"Stuff that not a lot of people know?" Emmett offered me another sandwich, which I declined, as he thought about my question. "Well, I enjoy doing laundry, as strange as that may sound. I guess I just like the repetitiveness of the motions, it gives me time to think while still getting something done. I've noticed that I always start with my left side when I do something even though I'm right side dominant. Uh…" he paused and took a drink of his milk as he thought some more. "I'm an early riser and…" a sinful grin appeared on his face as his voice got quieter and enticed me to lean in closer to him. "I am a total ass and boob man. I love a woman's body. Worshipping ever curve and every inch of smooth, soft skin. Using my hands and tongue and lips to explore her and see what makes her eyes darken with lust and fire. To see what makes her squirm with passion."

My eyes darkened in the way I knew Emmett meant them to. I bit my bottom lip to prevent myself from saying something stupid because it would be just like me to start talking about some nonsensical topic that had nothing to do with what was going on while he was obviously trying to heat things up between us. "God, you make me crazy when you do that," Emmett whispered, his eyes focused on my lips. He reached up with his thumb and brushed my lower lip, releasing it from my teeth.

"Emmett, maybe we should…" Emmett nodded his head in understanding, but didn't move his hand right away. Instead, he rubbed his thumb across my cheek and placed a kiss to the corner of my mouth.

"So now it's your turn," he said. "Tell me stuff about you that not a lot of people know."

"I absolutely love to cuddle," I started hesitantly. I was about to bite my lip, but when I remembered Emmett's reaction I stopped and started playing with my hands, instead. "I like wearing big t-shirts to bed," I paused and took in a shaky breath. When I was about to start again, Emmett placed his hands over mine, effectively stopping the fidgeting movement. The only problem was, was that my leg started shaking and, of course, Emmett noticed it right away.

"Bella," he started, looking pointedly at the nervous energy that had clearly moved to my leg. "Are you scared of me?"

My eyes widened and my fingers started to twitch again despite Emmett's hands over them. "N-no. Wh-wh-why would y-y," I paused to clear my throat. "W-why would you think that?" My voice shook the entire time and I wondered if he would even be able to understand what I had tried to say.

"Because you can't stop shaking, Bella. I'm going to guess that biting your lip is a nervous habit, and when you stopped that, you started fidgeting with your hands, and when I stopped that, your leg started shaking. You obviously have a lot of nervous energy going through you. My question is if I'm the reason for all of it."

"Yes. N-no. Well, y-yes, but…" I groaned and pulled my hands away from Emmett, using them to cover my bright red face and indecision tore through me.

"Bella," Emmett chided. "Which is it? If I make you that uncomfortable, I can leave right now. But if I don't, then talk to me and tell me what's going on in that beautiful head of yours." He pulled my hands away from my face and held them in his hands.

I took a deep breath and avoided looking him in the eye. "I don't know how to explain everything that's going through my head, Emmett. I'm so confused and now I'm making you confused and doubtful and I feel horrible that I'm making you feel that way and I want to try to fix it, but I don't know how to try to fix it and I don't know how our relationship is going to work out and that scares me and I don't like being kept in the dark, but what I don't like even more than that is not being able to figure things out and-"

"Bella, stop," Emmett commanded. I took in another shaky breath and waited for him to continue. Hell, he might not even continue and he might just walk out the door right now. It would make sense, I probably scared him off with all my freaking out and having a son and- "Bella, I thought I told you to stop. I can practically hear the thoughts going through your head right now. You need to relax, baby. That's what the whole point of this was. Right now, I just want you to listen to me and hear what I have to say." I nodded.

"I thought we had gone over this already, but I guess not well enough." I slumped in my seat and was about to speak out when Emmett glared at me. "I'm not saying it as a bad thing, Bella. I'm just wondering what I need to do to get you to realize that I'm not going to leave just because you have a son or because you're confused. I'm confused about this too, Bella. I want this to work so badly, but I have no idea how to accomplish it. This is going to be tough, I'm not going to lie. With me in Chicago when my job requires me to move around a lot and you and Logan here, we're going to have to work hard at it. But I think we can do it. The only question is, is do you want to do it? You've told me yes before, Bella, but it's obvious that you're hesitant about your decision. Talk to me. Tell me what's going through that pretty head of yours."

"Just stupid stuff," I mumbled. "I think I just need to figure it out by myself." Emmett looked ready to protest, but before he could, I cut him off. "I know what you're going to say, Emmett. But I've never been in this situation before. Give me some time to work things out in my head. If I ever have any huge concerns, I'll make sure I talk to you about them. Just give me this right now. That's all I ask." Emmett started at me and I could feel his penetrating gaze, but this time it didn't make me feel awkward. This time it made me feel reassured in what we had and what we were going to do together to make sure it worked out for us in the long run.


	11. Packing up my Memories

**Chapter 11**

**Emmett POV**

**Week Two, Friday**

Much to my dismay, the past week has gone by in a blur. I cherished each and every single day I spent with Logan and Bella, but I desperately wished I could have more time with them than what we currently have. Every morning before Bella and Logan would leave for school, I'd go to Bella's to pick up Dufus and we'd talk for about twenty minutes. Our conversations never really amounted to anything drastic because neither of them were morning people and it took them forever to wake up. But I loved every minute none the less.

After they left I would take Dufus for a walk before we'd get in the car and head back to my place. I would do my morning workout and then go back to my place to shower and finish getting ready for the day followed by some playtime, training, and another walk for Dufus. Then I'd sprawl out on the couch with Dufus on my chest and we'd fall asleep watching a movie or TV show. For lunch I'd put Dufus in his crate and then head to Bella's school with lunch for the two of us unless Bella had a meeting.

I usually hated having a routine, believing that restricting myself to a strict schedule would drive me crazy. Life was too unpredictable. Spontaneity was the way to go. Not knowing when things were going to happen was what life was all about. Most of the people I knew who had strict regimes drove themselves crazy with the need to be in a certain place at a certain time. There was no way I wanted to do that to myself.

Being with Bella was starting to change my mind about that. Now I didn't see it so much a restriction, but as a way to keep myself on top of things. A way to lessen the stress in my life. Looking back, when I didn't have any real guidelines to my life except making sure I was at the games and practice on time, I had a harder time sleeping and it was harder to remember all the little things in my life.

All these thoughts and more filled my head as I stood over my suitcase, packing up my belongings in preparation for my flight the next day. "Dufus, what am I going to do?" The pup was too busy devouring a bone in a corner of the room to pay me any mind. Sighing, I continued to pack up my things, wondering when I was going to be able to come back and see my Bella and Logan.

Football was my life, what I had always excelled at and live for, but now it didn't seem as important in the long run, and I was dreading having to go back to Chicago. I knew that football was always going to be a big part of my life, and there was nothing that would ever change that, but now it seemed like there were other things I wanted it life too. What I wanted was here, in Forks, Washington with Bella, Logan, and Dufus.

A handful of guys on the team were married and a couple even had kids and I always made it a priority to ask how their families were doing. And every single time, without fail, their eyes would light up and they'd get this goofy grin on their face that all the other single guys made fun of, but what I secretly envied.

And I thought that I might find that with Bella and Logan in my life.

My reverie was interrupted when my phone started ringing shrilly. With hope that it was Bella, I scrambled over to the bedside table to grab my phone before I missed the call. I couldn't help the slight wave of disappointment that filled me when I saw that it was my Mom and not Bella calling me.

"What's wrong?" she immediately questioned, not even giving me a chance to say 'hi'.

"Hello to you to, Mom. Why'd you feel the need to call me?"

"Don't try that with me Emmett Cullen. A mother always knows when her children need her. And my baby boy needs me. So talk to me Emmett. Tell me what's wrong."

"I don't know, Mom. I guess I'm just really confused right now. My entire life I've always wanted to be in the NFL. It's been my one goal and I finally have it. Now I'm not so sure if it's what I really want."

"This is because of Bella, isn't it?" I could tell from her voice that she already knew the answer to her question.

"Yes."

"Emmett, while I don't doubt your feelings for this girl at all, I think you might need to take a deep breath." I opened my mouth to cut her off, but I couldn't get a word in edgewise. "Don't even think about interrupting me Emmett, and let me finish say what I have to say. I'm sure you're feelings for this girl are very genuine, I've never known you to be this hung up about a girl. Ever. But I think you also need to think about her feelings too.

"While you hide it and fool a lot of people, I know that you're a very emotional person. That you feel more things more intensely than other people normally do. You've been that way you're whole life. What about your Bella? From what you've told me, she's more protective and not as forthcoming right away as you are. How do you think she would feel if you started talking about quitting your job and moving out there to be with her all the time? While that might make perfect sense to you, I'm sure it'll take a little while for her to get more comfortable around you. For her to be comfortable enough with herself to move on from her past and forget those who have hurt her. For her to realize that not every man is out to hurt and use her.

"As much as I know you don't want to, you need to give her some space and time to think, Emmett. Let her get comfortable with all of these now feelings and emotions before you start making life altering decisions."

I was silent for a moment, letting her wise words seep in. "Why is it you always know what to say?"

She chuckled. "I told you, dear. A mother always knows. And this mother can't stand to wait another day to see her son. Do you still want your father and I took pick you up at the airport? We can go to lunch with Rose after."

"Yeah, Mom. That sounds good."

"Fantastic. We'll go to that place of Fourth, where they have you're the steaks you and your father love so much." I smiled and listened as she continued on about the newest charity she was funding and her anger at finding out that two more nurses at the hospital had hit on my dad.

"I swear, the nerve of them! One day I'm going to march in there and show them all that Carlisle Cullen has been and will be taken for the rest of time! Now I know that you're father would never cheat on me, but those bimbos are really starting to irk me. Just wait, once they have to deal with Esme Cullen…" Her words were drowned out when I saw Dufus look up from his bone and stare at the doorway. He hadn't left that thing alone since I gave it to him.

When he ran out of the room, I swung my legs off the bed, sat up and followed him out of the room, wondering what had got his attention. "Emmy!" I grinned.

"Hey Mom, I'm sorry to cut this short, but I have visitors. I'll have to talk to you tomorrow. Love you, bye."

"Alright then. I suppose I'll let you go to entertain Bella and Logan." I didn't even question as to how she knew who my guests were as ended the call. Like she said, mothers always knew.


	12. Dinner and a Movie

**Chapter 12**

**Bella's POV**

**Week Two, Friday**

Logan and I walked through the door and were immediately greeted by Dufus, who barked at me for a minute before realizing that, since I had my hands full, I wouldn't bend down to play with him so he moved on to Logan, placing slobbery wet kisses on my son's cheeks.

Emmett came bounding down the stairs next, looking just as happy as Dufus was to see us. He made a beeline towards me and despite my protests, took the bags I held. Emmett surprised me when he wrapped his free hand around my waist and pulled me closer to him, our bodies almost completely touching. He kissed me sweetly and then pulled away to whisper in my ear.

"I missed you today."

"We missed you too. And we come bearing dinner and our pajamas. Are you interested in a sleepover?" Emmett pulled away from me, disbelief in his eyes.

"Seriously?" he asked incredulously. I nodded my head, happy that I was able to surprise him.

"Seriously." Emmett's grin was almost blinding as he pulled me in for a hug. I smiled and hugged him back just as tightly.

"Emmy, Emmy!" Logan shouted, breaking our reverie. Emmett pulled away from me and knelt so he was at eye level with Logan.

"What's up bud? Come give me a hug." Logan, forgetting about Dufus for the moment, ran into Emmett's waiting arms, his small arms wrapping about Emmett's large neck and holding on like he was afraid he was going to leave.

Which was true, Emmett was going to leave. Tomorrow. And we had to tell Logan about it tonight, which was part of the reason Emmett and I planned this. We had talked about having dinner and spending time together before breaking the news to Logan, Logan and I would go home and then come back the next morning to take Emmett to the airport. I decided, however, that a sleepover would be a nice treat, and so we surprised Emmett.

"Guess what we gonna have for dinner, Emmy."

"What are we going to have?" Emmett asked, ruffling Logan's hair.

"S'ghetti!" Logan exclaimed, a smile breaking out over his face. Spaghetti was by far his favorite meal but I didn't make it often because of how messy he always got and it was such a pain to clean up after. But i wanted this to be a good night for all of us, so spaghetti it was.

"Cool! Are we going to help your mama make it?" Logan nodded.

"My favorite part is when we put the noodles in the bowl with all the little holes to let all the water leave, but you have to be careful 'cause it's really hot. Mommy always lets me do that part."

"Mommy's right, you always have to be careful when you're cooking. Should we go help Mommy start to cook now?" Logan nodded and squealed in delight when Emmett picked him up and threw him over his shoulder, placing his free hand securely over the backs of his thighs.

"Emmy!" he shouted through his giggles. "You're funny!" Emmett threw the bags over his shoulder, freeing up his other hand. He looked back to where I stood at the doorway, watching their interaction with a smile on my face, and held out his newly freed hand for me to take. I took his hand, my smile growing even larger when his fingers curled around mine, and walked with them into the kitchen, Dufus trailing behind us with a bone is his mouth.

"Mommy," Logan called out. "Look at how Emmy's carrying me! It's so fun, Mommy!"

"I see that, baby." When we got into the kitchen, Emmett let go of my hand and placed my bags down before he used both hands to carefully pick Logan off his shoulder and placed him safely on the ground.

"Should we get started on dinner?" I questioned, taking the bag that had all the materials for dinner in it to the table. Logan nodded and scrambled onto a chair. Emmett took our other bag back into the living room before coming back to the kitchen and filling Dufus's water bowl. "Wash your hands, Logan." I said, still setting up everything.

"Kay, Mommy." Logan climbed off the chair and went to the sink, looking at it with large eyes. At home we had a stool that he would you to make him tall enough to see over the edge, but that wasn't the case here.

"I'll help you, bud," Emmett called out. "Just give me a sec to finish getting Dufus set up." Emmett placed his hands on Logan's waist and picked him up again, making him the perfect height to reach the sink.

"All done, Emmy. Now it's your's and Mommy's turn." Emmett set Logan down and turned to me.

"Do you need help reaching the sink too?" he asked playfully. I grinned and cuffed his arm.

"Thank you, but I think I can manage this on my own." I stepped around Emmett's big body and started washing my hands, unable to ignore his presence behind me.

"If you're sure about that," he whispered in my ear, wrapping his arms around my waist and stepping closer so that his front was almost completely touch my back. I momentarily forgot where we were and so desperately wanted to groan and wiggle my butt against him.

But I couldn't forget where I was. My very impressionable son was sitting just five feet away from us and absolutely nothing of that nature could happen between Emmett and I for the time being. And even if Logan wasn't there, I would've wanted to wait. Fooling around a little might've been okay, but as good as Emmett made me feel, I didn't want to have sex with him yet.

That didn't mean that I couldn't mess with him a little, though.

I placed my dripping hands on his that were wrapped around my waist and pulled them towards the running water. Putting soap on my hands, I sensually lathered it onto his hands and forearms, smiling deviously when I felt Emmett's heart skip a couple of beats and his breathing become labored. Apparently Emmett's arms were a big erogenous site for him. I'd have to keep that in mind.

"You're all set," I declared happily after rinsing his hands and drying them off. I wiggled my body to try to escape the confines of his arms, accentuating the wiggle in my butt just to drive him crazy. Emmett glared playfully at my back as I walked back over to the table and a patiently waiting Logan before he followed suit.

Eating and preparing dinner went just as I expected: messy, but extremely fun. There was hardly a time when one of us wasn't laughing at the expense of another. After dinner, we all pitched in and cleaned up the obnoxiously messy kitchen before retiring to the living room with popcorn to watch a movie.

Before that, though, Emmett and I had decided to tell Logan about tomorrow, knowing that the chances of him staying awake through the entire movie were slim to none. Emmett and I sat on the extremely wide and cushy couch, watching Logan and Dufus play.

"You've done great with training him. Thank you." I commented about Dufus. Emmett wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me in close to him.

"Anytime, babe."

"Hey, Logan, can you come here for a minute. Emmett and I need to talk to you." Logan looked up from playing with Dufus and came over to the couch, climbing to sit in my lap.

"Yeah, Mommy?" Logan asked, looking up at me with big eyes.

"You know how Forks is your home, and you live with Mommy?" Logan nodded. "Well Forks isn't Emmy's home. He lives in a place called Chicago a ways away from here." Logan nodded slowly, not really comprehending what I was telling him. "And Emmy has to go back home tomorrow because of his job." Logan bit his lip as he started to slowly put the pieces together in his mind. "So that means that we won't be seeing Emmy for a while because he lives so far away and has to work." Logan's eyes started to tear up and he looked to Emmett fearfully.

"You gunna leave us?"

"Just for a little while, Little Big Man. But I'm going to talk to you every day and I'll even visit a couple times and maybe sometime you guys could come visit me. But I'm not going to leave you forever, bud, I promise."

Logan looked a little unsure, but then he stuck out his pinkie. "Pinkie promise?" he questioned. "You can't break a pinkie promise, Emmy, or bad things will happen." Emmett entwined his pinkie with Logan's.

"I promise with all my heart." Emmett looked to me as he said this. After a moment of silence he said, "So should we start the movie now?" Logan, back in happy spirits, started bouncing on my lap.

"Yeah!" Logan grabbed his smaller bowl of popcorn from the coffee table and laid on the little bed he had made for himself at the foot of the couch out of the couch. Dufus curled up by his feet and laid his head on his paws, clearly worn out from his day of excitement.

"Make sure Dufus doesn't get into the popcorn, Logan," I said, grabbing the bowl of popcorn that Emmett and I were going to share. Emmett started the movie and dimmed the lights before coming back to the couch.

Like I expected, about a half hour into the movie, Logan was knocked out and Emmett and I were pretty close ourselves. So, being careful not to step on Logan or Dufus, I got off the couch and took the empty bowls of popcorn into the kitchen.

When I went back to the living room, Emmett had draped a blanket over Logan and Dufus and he was lying against the back of the couch. "Come snuggle with me," he commanded softly. I climbed back onto the couch, loving how wide it was, and snuggled into Emmett's chest as he pulled a blanket over us. "I think this is what I'm going to miss most, aside from seeing you guys almost every day."

Silently, I agreed, tightly holding onto Emmett's shirt with my hands, afraid what was going to happen when I had to let go. No matter how much Emmett and I had talked about it and he comforted me, this was always going to hurt.


	13. Tearful Goodbyes

**I Will Never Leave You Lonely**

**Chapter 13 – Tearful Goodbyes **

**Emmett's POV**

**Week Two, Saturday**

I woke up to little teeth gnawing on my fingers. Groaning, I turned onto my side, cornering Bella in between me and the back of the couch, her head pillowed on my left arms and my right arm – which had tiny bite mark on the fingers – draped over her waist.

My eyes closed again and I was about to drift back off into a deep sleep when the whimpering started. My eyes flashed back open and I craned my neck to look over the side of the couch.

Logan was still peacefully asleep on his makeshift bed, but Dufus sat at the edge of the couch, looking up at me expectantly. Cursing under my breath, I realized he probably had to go pee. Sighing, I disentangled myself from Bella, careful not to wake her up. I didn't want to get up but I also didn't want to have to clean up an accident.

Making sure to watch where I was walking, so as not to step on a little puppy tail or child's fingers, I walked into the kitchen, glanced at the clock on the stove as I walked past and groaned at the green numbers it displayed, and headed towards the back door, Dufus trotting happily behind me.

I opened the door and stepped outside, the motion censored light flashing on and blinding me temporarily as Dufus raced between my legs, eager to take care of business. I stuffed my hands into the pockets of my shorts and blew out hot air, my breath making a cloud in the cold night. Goosebumps appeared on my arms and I looked around for Dufus, wondering if he was almost done.

"You better not make a habit outta this!" I called out to him quietly. "'Cause this shit just ain't gunna fly." Dufus came trotting back up the stairs, his tail wagging and tongue lolling out.

Rolling my eyes, I headed back in, eager to get back to Bella. Dufus, it seemed, was just as eager to get back to Logan because he was already curled up by his side, looking up at me as I came in before laying his head back down on Logan's stomach.

I climbed back onto the couch, resuming my position from before. Bella barely even stirred. I fell asleep, once again, with a smile on my face.

**-x-x-x-x-**

The second time I woke up was much like the first, with little teeth gnawing on my fingers, but this time there was a sleepy voice calling out, too.

"Emmy?" I groaned and cracked open one eye. Logan stood by the side of the couch, a blanket draped over his shoulders and his stuffed animals clutched in his arms.

"Yeah bud?" From the looks of it, he had just woken up.

"I hungwy. Dufus too." Nodding, I closed my eyes again for a minute, slowly waking myself up.

"Alright, bud. I'll work on breakfast. Why don't you let Dufus out, okay?"

"'Kay, Emmy" Little feet and paws scurried off. I rolled over.

"Bella, time to wake up," in return, she moaned. I chuckled lowly and placed a kiss on her neck after moving the hair away. "I know. I'm gonna go start breakfast, okay?" Another groan, but this one less irritated.

Smiling, I slowly got up and made my way back to the kitchen, once again looking at the little green lights on the stove that told me I only got an extra hour and a half of sleep.

Rubbing a hand over my face I braced my hands on the counter and let my head hang down, stretching our my neck muscles as I took a deep breath, more awake now.

As I stood up, Logan and Dufus came back inside. Looking over at him, I asked, "whatcha want for breakfast, little man?"

He climbed up onto a chair with only minimal difficulty before looking at me. "Cewreal." I grabbed a box from a cupboard and held it out to him for his approval. With a single nod, I got my answer and started making a bowl for him.

After setting it in front of him I got Dufus his food just a Bella stumbled in.

And I do mean stumbled.

Her hair was a mess, it almost looked like a… nest or something. She had an imprint of my shirtsleeve cuff on her cheek. Her eyes were barely open and her mouth was in a full pout as she collapsed into the chair next to Logan, rested her arms on the table, and then laid her head on her forearms.

She was adorable.

The women I was used to being with would _never _have let other people see them like that. They would've spent hours in the bathroom putting on war paint and disgusting smelling perfume in abundance. They would dress in clothes to tight and make sure their hair was just right. Even just to work out, where they were going to get sweaty and smelly anyway, they felt the need to look so… fake. So put together all the time.

My Bella wasn't. She was natural. And even more beautiful for it.

"Bella?" She groaned.

Apparently she isn't a morning person.

I grinned. And then finished dishing out Dufus's breakfast before setting it down for him and getting him some fresh water. I cooked some toast and cut up some fruit for my breakfast, Logan eating quietly and Bella still nine/tenths asleep.

I had finished my breakfast, Logan was almost done with his, and Bella was just starting to come back to us when Logan asked, "When you leawve, Emmy?" I froze and Bella's head shot up, her eyes wide at his question.

I walked over to the table and crouched down next to his chair, turning him so he was looking at me. Bella watched, quiet as she listened to what I told him.

"In a little bit. You and Mommy are gonna drive me to the airport, where the airplanes are." He nodded his head, a little curl bouncing over one eye.

"When you be back?" I smiled sadly at his question.

"I'm not really sure, bud. My job is kinda weird. But I'll call you guys. And we can write to each other. And email. And Skype and stuff. It'll be like I'm right here with you."

He shook his head. "I like it when you hewre better."

I pulled him in to a hug. "I know, bud. I do too." I kissed his hair. "But you'll still have so much fun. At school and with Dufus, you uncles, and Mommy. I'll be back before you know it. Promise."

While I knew it wasn't what he really wanted to hear, it seemed to appease him for the time being. "'Kay, Emmy. I gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you too, bud. And Mommy." I kissed his hair. "But we still have some more time together before we need to say goodbye." Logan's little arms squeezed my neck once before he slowly let me go and turned back to his cereal, finishing the last of it and bringing his bowl over to the counter.

"Logan, why don't you go pick up your toys in the living room, okay?" He nodded and, without a word, went to do as she asked, Dufus following behind him.

Bella left her seat and came up behind me, wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her cheek on my back. "It'll be okay," she reassured me.

I turned around in her arms and took her lips in a slow, passionate kiss, leaving us both breathless. "Yeah," I smiled softly. "It will. I have something for you."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah? And what's that?"

I removed my hands from around her waist and walked to one of the drawers, pulling out a key. "I want you to have this."

Bella's mouth was opened wide in shock, looking at the small key before she turned her wide eyed gaze up to me. "W-wha'?"

"I talked with the owner and I'm going to rent for a while longer. I want you to have they key." When she started to protest I swooped down and kissed her again, cutting her off. "No. No protests. Just take it. You never know when you'll need it, okay?"

Numbly, Bella nodded her head and didn't offer up any more protests or excuses why she should give it back to me.

I smiled and walked with her back to the living room, where Logan was on the floor – all his toys picked up – playing with Dufus. Bella and I joined them, laughing and playing until it was time for me to put my bags in the car so they could drop me off.

**-x-x-x-x-**

The car ride to the airport in Seattle was filled with all three of us singing to some of Logan's favorite songs.

We all got silent, though, when I pulled into the parking garage. I pulled a baseball hat low over my face, donned a pair of dark sunglasses, and pulled up the collar of my jacket, hoping it might be enough to conceal my identity at least a little bit.

Bella helped Logan out and I grabbed my bags in one hand and swung them over my shoulder, picking Logan up in the other, and grabbing Bella's hand in my own with my free hand.

I looked down at her and smiled, hoping I was be reassuring. Her answering smile told me I was at least doing something right.

I was about to start walking but abruptly stopped and dropped Bella's hand.

"Hold up a sec, I forgot something." Going back to the car and unlocking it, I grabbed two Bears hats out of the back. I plopped one on Logan's head and pulled it down low before doing the same to Bella.

Hopefully, if my cover was blown, theirs wouldn't be.

I grabbed Bella's hand back in mine and started walking towards the baggage check-in.

The last place I'd be able to see them.

We were silent as we walked, just taking in each other's presence and the comfort from them.

I noticed a couple of paps around the place, but thankfully we were able to walk past them with no problems. At least that's what I thought.

As we got closer and closer to the point where we would have to separate, I could feel Bella's hand tighten on mine. I squeezed back, hoping she realized that I hated this just as much as she did.

When I stopped, Logan's little arms were wrapped tightly around my neck, unwilling to let go. Bella moved to stand in front of me, our hands still connected.

"Emmy leavin' now?"

"Yeah, Little Big Man. It's time for me to go on the plane."

He buries his face in my shoulder and I can feel a wet spot starting to form. "But you gonna call, wite?"

"Every day and night. And we'll use the computers to see each other. And I'll be back soon, I promise." While I was looking at Logan, my words were meant for Bella as well.

"'Kay," he mumbled in to my shirt.

Bella smiled sadly at me and stood on her tip toes to place a kiss at the corner of my mouth. "You should probably get going. To check your bags."

I nodded but didn't pull away or let Logan down. Instead, I pulled her closer and wrapped an arm around her waist, hugging two of the most important people to me, breathing them in to tide me over until I could see them again.

I wished I could hold onto them forever, but I pulled away and set Logan down, crouching down to his level to wipe away his tears.

"I'll call as soon as I land, okay?"

Bella nodded shakily, her lower lip trembling. I kissed Logan on the cheek and Bella on her forehead before I let go of their hands and walked away.

By far the hardest thing I had ever done.


	14. Picking Up the Pieces

**I Will Never Leave You Lonely**

**Chapter Fourteen – Picking up the Pieces **

**Disclaimer: I don't own or claim anything you recognize.**

**AN: My muse has returned! And with that comes more chapters on a regular basis! With that being said, I'm looking at having this story update every other weekend, most likely Saturday or Sunday mornings.**

**Bella's POV**

Unlike on the way to their airport, our car ride was silent, Logan and I both too lost in our own thoughts. But as I unlocked the door and we went inside, we both fell apart.

Tears streaked down Logan's face as he looked up at me with wide eyes, looking for me to fix it, like I had with so many things before. But I couldn't fix this, there was nothing that would make it better, and that cut into my heart on an entirely different level.

"I know, buddy, I know," I whispered brokenly as I collapsed onto my knees and pulled him into my arms, clutching at him desperately.

Dufus, who we'd dropped off at home on our way to the airport, started whining from his house as he heard our distress after we came in. Sniffling, I pulled away from Logan. "Why don't you go get your blanket and pillow and bring them into Mommy's room. We'll curl up under the blankets and study, okay?"

My baby nodded morosely before he shrugged out of his jacket, not bothering to pick it up when it fell off the hook and I didn't have the energy to chide him as he kicked off his shoes on his way up the stairs.

Tears brimmed over my eyes once more and she sniffled, wiping my tears on my jacket as I tried to pull myself together. "Come on, Bells. You can't do this shit. You need to be strong for Logan." My eyes shut tightly as I tried to take my own advice, but the strength I was looking for didn't just miraculously appear like I had hoped it would.

Sighing, I took off my jacket and shoes and left them alone in much the same manner that Logan had, going over to Dufus's house.

Upon seeing me, Dufus's whimpers increased in volume and he started pawing at the bars of his house. "I know, Dufus, I'm coming, I'm coming." I sniffle as I let him out, letting out a shaky laugh as he automatically jumps onto my lap and climbs all over me, his cold nose poking my cheek and then my throat, his nails digging into the tender skin on my forearm as he tries to lick every inch of exposed skin in order to cheer me up. "Thank you, Dufus," I sniffle and pat away his cold nose. "Come on, then, let's let you outside to do your business." I stood up, placing him on the floor and made my way to the back door, the click of his nails on the floor following behind me.

It didn't take him long to take care of business and just a few minutes later, we were on our way up the stairs to my room.

Opening the door, I saw Logan curled up on my bed, almost lost under all the blankets he had covering him. He didn't even turn his head as I changed into some more comfortable pants and climbed into the bed next to him.

I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him closer as we comforted each other, with Dufus plopping down and curling up in a space between our legs.

"Emmy cawll yet?" Logan's tentative voice breaks the silence.

I close my eyes. "N-no, baby, he hasn't yet. But I have my phone right over here, and it's on the loudest ringer."

Logan's eyes fall, filled with even more sadness. "But he will, wight?"

I sigh, his words cutting into me once more, unable to help but wonder if I've been played again and should just swear off men. Unable to break my son's heart, I say the only thing I could. "Of course he will. He promised, right?" I run a hand over his wavy hair, terrified about how this might affect my little boy if Emmett did, indeed use me.

"How about we put in a movie? You can pick it out and I'll go make some popcorn." While it wasn't the best thing I could do for him, I hoped that this would at least help distract him even a little bit.

"Okay, mommy," he says, somewhat resigned.

I throw off the covers and moves over to the side of the bed he's on. "Do you want to find a movie on TV or pick a DVD?"

"DVD," he tosses the blankets off too, burying Dufus under the blankets.

The puppy wiggled out from under the heavy covers, looking up at us before he jumps off the bed, bounding around their feet. "Why don't you take Dufus with you?" Without another word, Logan leaves the room, Dufus trotting at his feet.

Before I could follow after them, I threw a longing glance back at my phone, hoping beyond reason that even just looking at it would make it ring with Emmett's call. Knowing that it was futile, I forced myself to stand back up and go downstairs to make the popcorn.

**-x-x-x-x-**

Three bowls of popcorn and very nearly four movies later, Logan rests in my arms, almost asleep as the last part of the fourth movie drones on in the background. Dufus lays, running in his sleep, between my legs and I so with the happiness that followed him into his dreams could be shared with my son and I.

Just as I was about to succumb to sleep myself, having long ago given up hope on a phone call, the shrill ringing of my phone made my eyes flash open and scramble to get to the phone before it stops ringing without unseating either Logan or Dufus.

Managing to stretch enough to grab it, I answer, "Hello," I said breathlessly. "Emmett?"

But the line was filled with silence.

"Emmett, is that you? Can you hear me? Please, Emmett, answer me," I couldn't help but beg, clinging onto that last shred of hope that Emmett hadn't fooled me, that he truly did care about Logan and I.

Nothing.

My heart sank even more, even further as I was suspended in a dark, bleak place, darker than even with Edward. In a zombie-like state, I shut the phone, letting it drop back down to the bed.

I wrapped my arms around Logan again, burying my face deep into his neck, breathing in his innocence. "I'm so sorry, Logan. I'm such a fool. I shouldn't have let him in…" Tears fall unchecked down my face.

I swallow harshly, my throat closing in on itself when the phone rings again. Figuring it was just another prank caller, I leave it alone, unable to stand it if it isn't him.

The phone stops ringing, then starts again just seconds later. I ignore it again, but the third time it rings, I grab for the phone once more, ready to tell whoever was calling off.

"What?" I demand quietly. "What the hell do you want?!"

"Bella?" My heart stops.

"Emmett?" I whisper, not believing this, having thought he had already forgotten about us.

"You expecting someone else, beautiful?" His teasing gives me pause and then I'm crying again, but this time in relief. "Bella, hey, hey… What did I say? What's wrong?"

"You d-didn't for-forget," I choke out.

"Of course I didn't. I said I wouldn't, Bella. I just couldn't call you right away, my parents, well, they accosted me at the airport. I'm so sorry I couldn't call sooner. It must be late for you, why are you still up?"

I smile shakily, my heart lifting up once more as realization that I just need to _believe _fills me. "Wait, you mean… You didn't try calling me before?"

"Yeah, I did. This is the third time. Why? Bella, what's going on?"

"You mean you didn't…" I shake my head. "No, no, it's nothing. I'm just glad I was still awake."

"Me too," I could practically hear his smile through the phone and I couldn't help but smile back, just imagining his dimples. "How was your flight?"

"It was okay. Cramped, but we made it in good time and there wasn't much turbulence. Is Logan still awake?"

I looked down at my son who was still sleeping soundly. "No, but, just a minute, I know he wants to talk with you." I moved to set the phone down, placing my hand on his shoulder. "Hey, baby, wake up. There's someone who wants to talk to you. Logan, baby, come on. Open those pretty eyes for mommy." I smile when I see his eyes flutter open. "Hey, there's someone who'd like to talk to you." I take the phone and hold it up to his ear, smiling when I hear Emmett talk to him.

It doesn't take him long before he takes the phone from me, sitting up and talking happily along with his Emmy. I couldn't believe my eyes, not only had Emmett called but Logan woke up with relatively little prodding.

Logan and Emmett talked for about an hour before he finally started to succumb to sleep. With another promise that he'd call again the next day so they could talk, I got the phone back as Logan stumped back into the pillows once more.

"Hello again."

"Hey beautiful," I heard some other voices in the background, then Emmett's distant voice as he curses. "Bella, I'm sorry, sweetheart, but I have to go. I'm sorry we didn't get to talk more."

I close my eyes and shake my head, just happy that he called and I was able to hear his voice once more before sleep. "No, no. I understand. Logan really misses you already. We'll be able to talk more tomorrow."

"Right. Until tomorrow, sleep tight, Bella Swan."

"Until tomorrow," I whisper into the phone before hanging up. I put the phone down and lay back down under the blankets, my heavy eyes closing and drifting off to sleep easily.


	15. Time's a Ticking

**I Will Never Leave You Lonely**

**Chapter Fifteen – Time's a Ticking**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.**

**AN: Here's another chappy for you guys, hope you enjoy it. Want to send a shout out to Bajita, my Beta. She's pretty freakin' amazing and this chapter would have been a lot worse without her. See you on the other side.**

Six days. One hundred and forty-four hours. Eight thousand, six hundred and forty minutes.

I look over at my clock: 11:57 PM.

Hell, it was just barely six days since I had last seen her and I was already ready to pull my hair out. The little red numbers glare at me, mock me as I roll on to my side and try to close my eyes and fall asleep for the fourth time tonight.

Five minutes pass…

Seven minutes…

Eleven…

Twenty…

Twenty-six...

Thirty-two…

And still, nothing.

I growl, punch my pillow, and flop onto my back, staring up at the ceiling for an endless about of minutes before I sit up, then forcefully switch on my bedside lamp, rubbing a hand tiredly over my face. The light illuminated the ever growing stack of postcards and cards I had bought just the day before with Bella and Logan and the things I would write to them in mind.

_Bella._

Just thinking about her makes things better, but also worse. I groan when I think about how sweet she looks when she's all peaceful and warm in my arms whilst she's sleeping, or how hot she looks when she's all passionately angry when she's protecting someone or something she loves, or how deliciously innocent she looks when she's blushing...

I chance a glance at my phone, then the clock, but I know that calling her was out of the question. It was way too late for her, as I knew she got in bed before nine. A morning person, my girl was not.

I smile to myself. We'd talked on the phone every day, at least twice a day, for the past six days. And just like I promised, we also Skyped and emailed and snail-mailed – I had just sent out new letters (one especially for Bella and the other for Logan) and postcards today.

Swinging my legs out of bed, I quickly give up the notion that I'll get any sleep tonight, much like the nights before. An hour or two, yeah, maybe. But not a full night's sleep. No matter how much I work out or relax, and I really don't want to get into the fucking meds…

I sigh, remembering the promise I made to Bella, but I wince, sure that this is just a one-time thing, that I'm still just getting used to the time difference again.

I nod to myself, convinced as I pull on some sweats and a shirt before I meander out to the living room where I've got packing supplies and small gifts galore, some of which include bones and toys for Dufus, train and car sets or coloring books with requests for more pictures to post on my fridge for Logan, and books or pictures that I think will make her laugh or smile for Bella.

Turning the radio on softly, I hum along with the songs playing as I build three boxes and then pack them, getting them ready to ship out.

But that only takes about a half hour, and I'm left standing with my hands shoved in my pockets in the middle of the room, at a loss for what to do next.

Making a split second decision, I grab my keys and wallet and head out to my car. I get in without really knowing where I'm headed, if I'm headed anywhere in particular, I just know that I can't stay in the house right now. The painful silent, dreary, dark house that isn't filled with a little boy's laughter or a puppy's paws scampering across the wood floors, or a breathtaking woman's tempting as fuck smell, or drawings on the fridge, or toys scattered around on the floor…

I inhale sharply, so lost in my thoughts that I don't realize I'm home. Not where I live home, but _home_, with mom and dad. Chuckling softly to myself, I climb out and stand, taking a moment to survey the house. As always, memories of growing up here come flashing through my mind, each one of them bringing a smile to my face.

My smile falters slightly, though, when I see the light in my father's study is on. Frowning in confusion, I head up the steps and use my key to open the door, heading straight for Carlisle's study.

I knock softly as I slowly open the door and smile when I see my old man sitting behind his desk, a glass of untouched whiskey next to him and a mess of papers covering every inch of the workspace.

Carlisle looks up, seemingly surprised to see me standing there. "Emmett, son, what're you doing?"

I walk in and sit in one of the chairs across from him. "I could ask you the same thing," I state, and motion towards the mess – although, if I dared call it that out loud, I knew I'd get a glare and a plethora of excuses trying to wave it off as genius in the works.

"Oh, just looking over some of the medical reports for some of the guys," he looks over at the clock. "Guess I just lost track of time." I feel Carlisle's doctor eyes scanning over me, looking for any anomaly or apparent injury. When he seems satisfied that there's nothing seriously wrong with me, he sits back in his chair, the father coming to the forefront. "You okay, son? You're not looking too good."

I scoff and roll my eyes. "Gee, thanks, dad."

"Just, how do you kids say it? 'Keepin' it real'?"

I can't help but let out a burst of laughter, feeling lighter than I have in days. "Not sure that's what kids are saying, pops. And I think it'd be best for everyone if you don't try it again."

Dad releases a chuckle of his own, then sobers. "I'm serious, Emmett. What's going on?" he sets down the papers in his hands and gives me his undivided attention.

With all the conflicting emotions running through my head I wait for a moment, trying to figure out what to say, and when I figure that out, how to say it. After what feels like twenty minutes pass and I still have nothing to come of my efforts, I settle for a sigh and shrug. "I don't really know," I say half-truthfully. "I'm just…" I trail off and shrug again.

Carlisle watches me for a quiet moment, but I can't tell if he's doing that dad thing where he just waits for you to fill in the silence or if he's thinking about something to say.

"I understand." Apparently it was option number two. "Just so long as you're taking care of yourself and nothing is seriously wrong, you don't have to share."

This was the perfect opportunity. _Just tell him. What's the worst thing that could happen?_ But I couldn't. I was already without Bella, how would I be if I couldn't play my sport, the only other thing that made sense to me?

Thankfully, I was saved from having to decide.

"Carl-" my mom's sleepy voice interrupts the silence as she slowly opens the door, but she trails off when she sees me. Her eyes widen when she sees me. "Emmett!" she rushes forward, and I stand to accept her embrace.

"Hey Momma," I smile into her shoulder, breathing in her scent that is synonymous with home.

"What are my guys doing up so late?" she scolds, pulling away and moving to dad's side, brushing away his hair and kissing his temple.

"We're just talking, Esme. Emmett came over and I was still looking through some of these reports." Esme stands and looks over at me. I swift in my seat awkwardly and I can practically feel her gaze picking out every secret and disarming me. But, thankfully, she doesn't say anything in front of dad.

"Well I need my Emmy Bear time now. You're always on the road or working too hard," she walks back over to me and holds out a hand in what looks like a proposal but I know it's a command to come with her. She looks over her shoulder at dad. "Both of you do," she looks pointedly at all the files. Dad smiles sheepishly at her and I know she's got him whipped. Hell, the only reason he was probably able to stay up this late was because she fell asleep before it got late and she could scold him.

I take her hand and stand. "See ya' later, Old Man," I call over my shoulder as mom and I leave dad's study, dad's chuckle following after us as I hear him shuffle his papers around and put them back in folders, closing shop for the night.

I smirk. Yeah, totally whipped.

Mom leads me down to the kitchen where she sets a kettle of water to boil. I lean against the island, resting my forearms against the counter top as I wait for her to start talking, because I _know _she wants to talk.

She grabs an apple, cutting board, and knife, and gets to work. "What's going on, Emmett," she asks softly.

I close my eyes and hang my head, looking down. There's no way I can dupe her or try to avoid her Spanish Inquisition. The most I wave her off, the more persistent she'll get.

"Did something happen with Bella? Are you two fighting?"

I shake my head. "No, no. We're good. I just… I miss her," he says softly. "I'm not used to it, missing someone. Usually there was no connection, it was just a couple hours and then we went separate ways." I say, unashamed. Mom's been more than aware of my previous… dalliances. "But god, mom, I miss her, I miss _them_," I correct, "like no tomorrow. And it's not like I haven't talked to her. We talk, text, Skype, email, snail mail every day, multiple times a day! But in spite of all that, I can't get her out of my head, I can't seem to get over her."

Mom looks up from the cutting board with a knowing smile. "Have you told her all this, Emmett?" She grabs the peanut butter from the cabinet and dishes some out into a bowl, putting the apples next to them and putting it in front of me. I grin, she's made me my favorite snack.

I dip a slice into the peanut butter and shove it into my mouth before shaking my head. "She's so skittish already. I can't. I won't."

"Well you're going to have to tell her some time. By wanting to protect her, you might end up hurting her even more by not telling her how you truly feel," she comes to sit by me and snags one of my apples.

I shoulder bump her. "Hey, get your own apples."

Mom rolls her eyes and puts the apple in her mouth and chews it slowly, taunting me.

I chuckle and grab another apple. "Thanks for the snack."

"Of course. I always take care of my babies. Which means that you're not driving home tonight and you'll stay in your old room tonight," she stands, snagging one more apple slice before she places a kiss on my temple. "Finish up, then clean up and get your butt into bed."

"Yes mother," I drone, but smile, my love and appreciation for her growing impossibly more.

She leaves and I'm left to my own devices in the kitchen, sighing as I continue eating, thoughts of seeing Bella and Logan here, mingling with my parents and Rose, keeping me company.

**AN: Well, I hope you enjoyed it. If you feel so inclined, reviews are much appreciated. They really get me motivated and I love hearing what you guys have to say and think about what's going on. Until next time…**


	16. Those Pants

**Those Pants**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, hope you like it. I'd like to give a shout out to my beta, Bajita, she's a-MAY-zing! I shall see you all on the other side.**

**Bella's POV**

"Come on, Mommy!" Logan shouts from the living room, "Emmy's 'bout to start! Emmy's bout to start!" I smile to myself as I grab the bowl of popcorn and my drink and head into the living room.

"I'm coming, baby boy, I wouldn't miss Emmy starting." I curl up on the couch with Logan, Dufus curled up by our feet. Logan digs into the popcorn with gusto, shoving a large handful into his mouth while his eyes remain glued to the TV.

It's just the three of us watching Emmett's game tonight, since it's a weeknight, but sometimes on the weekends Dad, Alice, Jasper, and Jake have stopped by to watch Emmett's games with us, too. And despite my Dad and Jake trying to teach me all the rules and regulations of football, all I know is that Emmett has the ball and he tries to throw it to a teammate or run it to get one of those touch-downy things by where the weird yellow trident looking do-a-ma-jigs are.

I'd say I'm doing pretty good.

"Look, Mommy!" Logan exclaims, breaking me from my stupor. I look up at the TV, where Logan is pointing enthusiastically, and grin when I see Emmett on the screen, talking to one of his coaches, the number 19 proudly displayed on his back just under his last name, his helmet in hand. For some unknown reason, I notice his hair is getting longer, and my fingers itch to run through those unruly waves of his. I bite my lip, trying to quench these urges – and others – especially in front of my son.

But man-oh-man. Those pants. I inwardly lick my lips. I've never thought tight pants looked good on a guy, the same goes for short-shorts and speedos. It just doesn't work. But on Emmett? Mmm, mmm, mmm. I could go for some of that.

My eyes widen as I realize the completely out of character direction my thoughts took and I quickly turn them back to rated G things, trying to control my blush – or at least look away – so Logan doesn't see and ask me what I'm blushing about – the idea of having that conversation with my son makes me blush more.

I exhale and force myself to relax as the announcers continue going through the last minute things before the game starts. As we're waiting, I find myself thinking about the time it's been since we saw him off at the airport. Two weeks. Two agonizingly, horrendously, dreadfully slow weeks. But the days are slowly getting easier to bear. Maybe. We still talk every day, multiple times a day, and each time we get one of his packages – despite how many times I tell him not to spend any money on me – my heart melts a little inside and I can't help but wish he were here, with me, by my side, enjoying these little tokens of his affection with me.

My gaze snaps to the screen – and stays there for the rest of the game, Logan just as riveted – when I see the guys getting into their formation and the ball gets snapped to Emmett, who looks for who he's supposed to throw to just as the phone starts ringing. I can't bring myself to even think about going to answer it, though, as I pray that Emmett doesn't get barreled into like some of the other guys on the field.

I manage to stay up to watch the full game, but Logan finally succumbs to sleep sometime during the third period. I smile sadly, knowing he'll be upset with himself for not staying up and watching Emmett win in what appears to be a… _what's the word dad used? Shut-out? _I nod to myself. Yes, they won in a shut-out.

And as the clock started to wind down, I couldn't help the strong bit of pride that flooded throughout my veins, feeling the need to jump up and down and cheer for this wonderfully amazing guy who just played a great game, but I don't want to wake up Logan or get Dufus too hyped up so late in the evening.

So, instead, I settle for a less-than-satisfactory-but-at-least-quiet fist pump before standing and shutting of the TV, deciding to leave the cleaning for the morning as I pick up Logan, cradling him in my arms and walking upstairs, Dufus trailing sleepily behind us.

After tucking Logan in, I allow my mind to wander to my more than unusual morning tomorrow and how it came to be as I slip into bed, trying to mentally prepare myself for the meeting with the lawyer tomorrow and what all this could bring…

_Flashback…_

_I'm curled up on the couch with a blanket wrapped around my shoulders, fresh cup of tea in one hand, and the phone held up to my ear in the other._

"_Emmett? You still there?" I just got back from putting Logan down after he got to say his good nights to Emmett._

"_Yeah, I'm here," his gruff voice comes over the line and I can hear something get moved around in the background. "Just give me a sec." I nod even though he can't see me and take a tentative sip of my tea. "Alright, I'm back," I hear him come over the line, more rustling in the background. I can't help the small smile that comes across my face._

"_What're you even doing? It sounds like a herd of elephants over there."_

_He laughs softly. "Sorry, just doing some laundry."_

"_Oooh, you do laundry, too? I might not be able to let you go." I tease, curling up tighter as a pleasant feeling blooms in my stomach and spreads throughout my body._

"_Yes," he drawls. "I do my own laundry, Bella. I'm a big boy." I hear one more rustle before it goes quiet, his breathing the only sound coming through. "Bella?" he speaks up after a moment._

"_Mmmhmm," I mumble as I take another sip. "Can I talk to you about something?" I pause, not sure where this is going. _

"_Of course. Is everything okay?"_

_I hear him sigh as he tries to get his thoughts straight. "It's just… That phone call? From the jackwad? Has anything else happened?"_

_My pulse picks up speed and I lean forward, setting my tea on the table for fear that I won't be able to hold it steady the farther we go into this conversation. "N-n-no?" I search through my brain, trying to think of anything that happened that was stranger than usual. "Why?"_

"_I just wanted to check, baby. I'm worried about you a Logan. I don't like not knowing what this guy is doing," I can hear him exhale heavily and I know he's frustrated._

"_Emmett, you don't have t-"he cuts me off, his voice low._

"_Don't even think about finishing that sentence. Of course I do! I lo-care about you two very much and I will do anything in my power to help make sure you're both safe and happy. If anything ever happened…" I can hear the pain weaving its way through his voice and I'm caught speechless for a moment._

"_E-Emm…" I clear my throat. "Emmett, nothing's going to happen to us," I say softly._

"_You don't know that, Bella!" he protests._

_I go quiet, not quite sure what to say._

"_I just…" he continues. "I want to get find a lawyer, just in case. I don't want to be caught by surprise if he really does try something."_

"_Emmett, I can take care of this. I will take care of this," I say after a moment._

"_I know you can, Bella. You're more than capable. But I want to help you, let me in and share this burden with me. Please, baby."_

_I feel unbidden tears run down my cheeks. This amazing sweet man wants to help even though he has no obligation, no responsibility or ties to us. He still wants to help._

_I feel my heart clench._

"_I- O-okay," I finally say and I can hear Emmett's exhale of relief in the background._

"_Thank you, Bella, baby. Thank you. I'll look for someone and then tell you once I hear something, okay?_

_I nod my head and lift a hand to wipe away my tears._

"_Okay."_

_End Flashback…_

My eyes slowly flutter open and I groan when I hear Dufus barking and stepping all over my legs. "Duf, buddy, can't you just hold it?" I plead, but know it's futile. After all, when ya gotta go, ya gotta go.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming. But we really gotta start working on your bladder control because this will not be happening every…" I look over at the little florescent numbers on my clock. "God, it's just barely morning." I exhale and lay there for a moment before finally kicking my legs out from under the heaven that is my warm blankets.

Dufus darts off the bed and prances in the doorway, waiting for me. I meander over to my closet and grab a sweater, pulling it on to hopefully keep away the chill of the night as I wait for Dufus to take care of business.

As we head down the stairs, though, Dufus doesn't scamper off towards the back door where we always let him out to do his business because it's fenced in. No, instead he goes to the front door and jumps up and down in place, whimpering.

My brow furrows and I slowly move closer until I can see the outline of a car sitting in my driveway.

At this time of night? Who on earth could it be? I quickly run through a mental checklist: not dad because it's not the cruiser; Alice would have called; Mom's away on a knitting conference; Jake has the rabbit, and this car is way too big for that...

Then who?

I sneak closer to the window, making sure I'm standing in places where I can't be seen from someone on the outside looking in. I stay hidden behind the wall in between the door and windows for a moment before slowly and carefully moving so that I can, hopefully, see just a sliver of what's going on outside.

There.

The person, no, a man – I nod to myself, definitely a man – opens the car door and as he moves to climb in, the street lamp hits his face just right and my breath catches in my throat.

I jolt up quickly and throw the door open, drawing the attention of the figure as I stand, frozen, still trying to comprehend all of this.

"Emmett?"

**AN: Thoughts? If you guys feel so inclined, tell me what you thought about it in a review. Each and every one I read makes my day brighter. With that being said, I shall see you sometime in a couple weeks.**


	17. Like a Little Boy

**Like a Little Boy**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, hope you like it. This chapter, and I believe the next but I'm not completely sure, will be in Bella's POV. I'd like to give a shout out to my beta, Bajita, she's a-MAY-zing! I shall see you all on the other side.**

**Bella's POV**

_**Recap**__:_

_The person, no, a man – I nod to myself, definitely a man – opens the car door and as he moves to climb in, the street lamp hits his face just right and my breath catches in my throat._

_I jolt up quickly and throw the door open, drawing the attention of the figure as I stand, frozen, still trying to comprehend all of this._

"_Emmett?"_

"Bella," I hear him whisper reverently just as Dufus scampers out the door, running straight towards Emmett as the puppy whimpers and paws at his legs, anxious for a good scratch behind the ears.

I'm standing there, frozen, unable to help but wonder if I'm dreaming, because that's the only way he could actually be here, right? I mean, I just saw him on TV hours ago, and he was in Chicago, and I'm here, and…

In my daze of thoughts, I didn't notice Emmett come racing towards me until I'm pressed up against his warm, hard body. His arms wrap around me and pull me impossibly closer as he buries his face in my hair. "Oh, Bella. Bella, my sweet, warm, Bella," I hear him repeat over and over.

Still unsure if this is reality or not, I mechanically wrap my arms around his broad back. My right hand bumps against my left forearm and I can't help but take the chance to pinch myself, once, twice, then three times just to be safe.

But I'm still there, wrapped in Emmett's arms, and Dufus is running in circles around our legs.

And that's when I know something must be wrong, that's when I realize that the Emmett that's holding me now isn't the Emmett I spent two weeks with.

"Emmett," I say gently, bringing a hand up to cradle the back of his neck, playing lightly with the hair there. "Emmett," I repeat, more firmly than the first when he doesn't respond.

"Mmm."

"Can you put me down, big guy? Then we can go inside."

"Don't wanna leave you," I hear him mumble.

"I'm not going to leave, we're just going inside and sit." This seems to placate him enough that he slowly lowers me to my feet, but keeps me close to him. "Thank you, Emmett. Let's go inside now, okay?" I extract myself from his hold, but make sure to stay close and take his hand in mine once I stand next to him. Dufus has stopped running around in circles and has elevated to pawing at our legs and stepping on our feet, desperate to get our attention.

I look up at Emmett and smile, hoping it's reassuring and happy when, in reality, I'm shaking inside. I have no idea how to take this, how to deal with this situation because I never thought I'd be standing outside in my jammies at some ungodly early hour in the morning because my NFL playing boyfriend came for a… surprise visit.

It must have done the trick, though, because he smiles brightly back at me, or at least I think he does because the lighting out here really sucks.

Without another word, I lead him into the house, Dufus following after us, smart enough to remain silent although he still is very jittery. "Go lay down," I look down at Dufus and say sternly. He looks up at me with wide, adorable puppy eyes, but I don't back down and soon he's dropping his head, his tail tucked between his legs as he walks dejectedly to one of his doggie pillows and walks around on it in circles for a moment before plopping down and heaving a heavy sigh.

I roll my eyes at his theatrics, then turn my attention back to Emmett, who's watching me with this dopy eyed look.

I squeeze his hand and make my way to the couch. I let go of his hand so I can turn on a couple dim lamps to let some light into the room. "Why don't you si-" I gasp as I turn around to find him already sitting, the newfound light bringing to light things I hadn't noticed before, even on the TV.

I noticed during the pre-game showing that he wasn't shaving, but I thought it had just been some stubble and he didn't have time to shave that day. What I realize now is that the camera must have been farther away from him than I originally thought and it was an awkward angle at which the camera man was shooting, because there is a lot more than just stubble on his face.

I'm still having a hard time distinguishing how much of a beard he really even has. We haven't been able to do many Skype chats in the past few days, so it's not like I've seen him, but this… I can't tell if it's that the lighting is still bad or if it's more pronounced because of how bad the rest of his face looks.

Those deep, dark bags have come back with a vengeance, his cheeks don't seem as full, and… I wrinkle my nose. How I didn't notice the smell surrounding him, I have no idea, maybe there was a breeze outside or I was still too gob smacked, but I don't think he showered after the game.

But the whole time I'm looking him over, he's still looking up at me with that dorky smile, he eyes bright, but I'm starting to think that's just a trick of the light, because I can see how bad the rest of him is.

I walk closer, then lean down so I can get a better look at him, and it's just as I'd feared.

He's not sleeping.

He's not taking care of himself.

And I can pretty much guarantee that he hasn't talked to his dad about it like he promised me he would.

I paste on another fake smile as I cup his cheek in my hand. "That must have been a really long flight over here, especially after that game. Why don't you close your eyes," I suggest lightly, not wanting to upset him but knowing that if he doesn't get some shut eye soon, his body will crash.

His smile leaves and he looks up at me with troubled eyes. "But I don't want to leave you. You said you would stay."

I nod. "Yep, and I'm going to be right here, with you, while you sleep. I won't leave. Promise." And then, because I can't help myself, I close my eyes, lean closer and place a kiss on his forehead.

When I pull away, he's looking up at me with a still confused expression, but he nods none-the-less. I run my hand down his cheek, then stand back up. "Okay, let's get you set, mister," I help him take off his jacket, then his shoes, hoping that'll make him at least a little more comfortable.

I retrieve a pillow and blanket from the hallway closet and put the pillow down before encouraging him to lay down on the couch, desperately trying to ignore that look he's still pinning me with. I drape the blanket over him, taking the time to make sure it's tucked in around him before I dare to look up at him again.

And that look, that helpless, forever faithful, trusting look, pains me.

Because it's the exact same look I see on my little boy's face.

And I realize, with shocking clarity, that I've just gone through the same routine with a fully grown man that I do with my son every night.

I inhale shakily, trying to gather my courage and keep the tears at bay. "Okay, it's time to sleep now."

"Don't leave me."

I pretend not to hear what he says, because I don't know if that's fully possible anymore. I have a son, a little boy who depends on me for almost everything, and I need to be there for him. I need to be strong and a good role model. I need to show him how to act with kindness, and courage, and respect. I need to show him how to take care of himself.

So how can I justify being with someone who can't take care of himself? How is that not being selfish? How is that being a good mother, with her son's best interests at heart?

"It's time for bed now, Emmett. Time to close your eyes," I use my Mother Voice. The voice that even Logan knows not to mess with. And just like Logan, Emmett doesn't fight it, he closes his eyes and inhales deeply, and my heart breaks.

I stay there, brushing a hand over his hair and watching over him, hoping that he'll actually be able to get some good sleep in before he leaves tomorrow, because there's no way he can't go back home to Chicago tomorrow.

I swallow, and am surprised by how much that thought hurts me. The thought of never seeing him again. This whole time I had tried to keep myself distanced from him, tried to protect myself by not getting too close. But despite that, in total Emmett fashion, he just barreled through those walls.

And I think I have…

I think I have come to care for him very much, even if in this short time.

And that scares me most of all.

I'm torn out of my musings by a consistent, but slightly muffled noise. My brow furrows and I look around, not understanding what it could be or where it could be coming from. When the vibrations stop for a moment, then start right back up again, I realize that it's a cell phone, but my is upstairs, so that means…

I look over to the armchair where I place Emmett's coat, and now that I'm focused on the sound, I know, without a doubt, that that's where it's coming from.

I stand on shaky legs and walk over to the chair, dipping my hand in the side pocket and pulling out his phone. I know I shouldn't be snooping, I know that this is his and I have no right to look at it, but when the phone stops ringing and the display shows 23 missed calls, I know I can't not answer, especially when the phone starts ringing again and I see the Caller ID.

Hesitantly, I take my finger and swipe across the touch screen, effectively answering the call before slowly lifting the device to my ear.

"Hello, Mrs. Cullen…"

**AN: Thoughts? If you guys feel so inclined, tell me what you thought about it in a review. Each and every one I read makes my day brighter. With that being said, I shall see you sometime in a couple weeks.**


	18. Late Night Visit

**Title: Late Night Visit**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here is my holiday gift to you! I'm working on finishing up the next three to four chapters (it depends on how things pan out) so be on the look-out for those and I'm thinking this story will have it's ending with just over thirty chapters. With that being said, I'd like to send a shout out to my beta, Bajita, this wouldn't be possible without her and the chapters wouldn't be as great, either.**

**Bella's POV**

_**Recap:**_

_I stand on shaky legs and walk over to the chair, dipping my hand in the side pocket and pulling out his phone. I know I shouldn't be snooping, I know that this is his and I have no right to look at it, but when the phone stops ringing and the display shows 23 missed calls, I know I can't not answer, especially when the phone starts ringing again and I see the Caller ID._

_Hesitantly, I take my finger and swipe across the touch screen, effectively answering the call before slowly lifting the device to my ear._

"_Hello, Mrs. Cullen…"_

"Who is this?" I hear her question, frustration and worry eating at her voice, only emphasized by the fact that a complete stranger is answering her son's phone, whom she still can't get ahold of, I imagine.

"Bella. Bella Swan," I supply. "I'm a… friend of Emmett's," I don't even know what we are anymore, but I figure that's an easier and quicker explanation than the alternative of telling her the whole story, and I don't even know if Emmett has mentioned me to her.

When I hear her strange mix of a gasp and sigh of relief I realize two things at once, the first being that Emmett must have told her at least something about me and the second being that she realizes that if I'm the one answering his phone, something must be wrong.

"Bella, what's going on?" she demands. "Where's Emmett? Why isn't he answering his phone? Is he okay? He's with you right now, isn't he? When did..." she spouts off the questions rapid fire and I have a hard time keeping up, still trying to process the situation myself.

"Mrs. Cullen," I interrupt her, looking over at Emmett over my shoulder as I stand by the window.

"Esme," she corrects. "Please, call me Esme."

"Esme, Emmett is here," I start off by reassuring her. "He got here about ten minutes ago. He must have… Did he leave right after the game?" I ask, then shake my head even though I know she can't see me, knowing that that's not a priority right now. "Never mind. Esme," I turn to look at Emmett fully and swallow, pushing past the pain and sadness that fills me. "Esme, I think you and your husband need to come out here as soon as possible. Something's… Emmett's not himself," I end on a whisper, torn because I feel like I'm betraying him but knowing that he needs help and he won't get it on his own.

**-x-x-x-x-**

Nearly five and a half hours later, I sit in the armchair angled towards the door, Dufus sleeping on my lap as I gently pet him, my gaze flitting back and forth between a still sleeping Emmett and the front door, expecting Emmett's parents to be coming through the door any minute. Esme having texted me that they had landed in Seattle and rented a car to come to Forks – we had exchanged numbers since I was unable to unlock Emmett's phone and we realized it would be best if we could keep in contact easier, especially if there was a change in Emmett.

I had since left a voicemail for the lawyer I was supposed to meet with in, I look down at my phone, about four hours, and thought up a whole bunch of reasons I could explain Emmett's presence to Logan should he wake up before Emmett left, none of which seemed satisfactory and all of which left a feeling of unease in the pit of my stomach.

I'm jerked out of my thoughts, when I hear a knock at the door. Dufus slowly raises his head, his eyes still mostly closed before resting his head back on his paws, too exhausted to even be concerned with new people. I stand and lift him carefully, placing him on the seat I just vacated as I go to answer the door, even more unease unfurling in my stomach as I try, and fail, to prepare myself for meeting Emmett's parents, especially under these circumstances.

I wipe my sweaty hands off on my pajama pants and open the door, surprised, although I know I shouldn't be, to see a strikingly beautiful couple standing before me.

"Bella," the woman, Esme I presume, gushes and steps forward, enfolding me in her arms, which I was most certainly not expecting so I just stood there like a fool. "It's so good to finally meet you, sweetie. Although I wish it was under better circumstances," she pulls away but keeps her arms on my shoulders as she takes me in.

"Uh, hi…?" I manage to say.

The man, Carlisle, places a hand on Esme's shoulder and moves forward. "Can we come in and see Emmett, Bella?" he asks, cutting to the chase which I appreciated very much, unsure of myself in this kind of situation.

"Oh, yeah, of course," I move aside and hold the door open for them. "He's still sleeping, barely even moved, actually." I motion to the living room where he was, Carlisle already moving to the couch, crouch beside his son, his face pulled down in a frown as he takes in his appearance.

Esme and I stand off to the side, giving Carlisle his space as he works. I hear Esme's sharp inhale when she sees him in the light and I wince, not wanting to imagine what's going through her head as she sees her son so obviously in pain and sick. I hope to never have to experience that with Logan.

Carlisle stands after minutes of silence pass, the frown still etched onto his face as he comes over to our little group. "A couple weeks ago he mentioned that he wasn't sleeping," I supplied softly. "He told me he'd go talk to you if it got worse, but it's obvious he didn't," I say sadly, looking over the big man still sleeping.

Carlisle wraps his arms around his wife and pulls her in for a hug, comforting her without words for a moment and I look away, feeling like I'm intruding.

"He hasn't been sleeping, that's obvious," Carlisle confirms after a minute of silence. "But he's also not taking regular care of himself in general. It doesn't look like he's been eating properly either," he closes his eyes and takes in a deep breath.

"He's been avoiding us for the past two weeks. I can't believe I didn't see it before," Esme murmurs to herself, self-loathing evident in her tone.

Carlisle looks down at his wife and shakes his head, running a hand over her lower back in comfort and my heart lurches at the love they so obviously have for one another. "We couldn't have known, Esme. He's a grown man. We can't take care of him for his entire life."

Esme looks like she wants to argue, but knows deep down that he's right, so she stays quiet and turns her gaze back to Emmett.

"Momma?" I hear a soft, sleepy voice call out, and my gaze snaps to the staircase where Logan stands, clutching Shoots and Ladders close to his chest.

I scurry to the stair case and try to intercept him before he sees too much, but know that despite the fact that he's not a morning person, I know he's registered the extra three people in our living room. "Yeah baby, momma's here," I say as I pick him up and shift him in my arms to try and veil his view of Emmett, Esme, and Carlisle as I take him back upstairs to put him back to bed.

Thankfully, he's still more than half-way asleep so he doesn't ask any questions and is easy to put back to bed, but I'm sure come morning – or, at least later in the morning after he fully wakes up – he'll have questions a plenty.

I place one last kiss on his forehead after I tuck him in and leave his room, closing his door behind me softly. I lean back against the solid wood behind me, taking deep breaths as I prepare to head back downstairs to talk with Emmett's parents more, a clear decision as to what I need to do at the forefront of my mind.

When I get back downstairs, I find Esme and Carlisle much in the same place I had left them, both of them looking up as I descended the stairs, remaining on the last step for what I'm about to say, needing that physical space between us, between Emmett and I.

"I care about your son, I really do," I start off softly. "But I can't… I can't take care of him like this. I have a little boy, and if I'm going to… be with anyone, I need to know that they'll be a good role model for Logan. I need to know that they can take care of themselves and not do foolish things to hurt their health. Logan comes first. He always has, and he always will."

The Cullens remain silent, just watching me, and I shift uncomfortably under their scrutiny. Then, Esme nods.

"From the first moment Emmett talked about you, Bella, I knew you were different. As his mother I can't tell you how thankful I was for that, especially after seeing some of the other women he's been with. And I understand. Your son does come first, but I think you might be exactly what my Emmett needs."

I blush furiously at her words and look down, unsure how to respond to her statement. "I uh… Would you like some tea?" I blurt out, desperate to change the subject.

Esme looks at me knowingly but gives me a nod of understanding and lets me off the hook. "Yes please. Thank you."

I exhale in relief and lead them to the kitchen. "Please, sit," I say, as I fill the kettle and set it on the stove to boil. "Any for you Mr. Cullen?" I ask as I start pulling mugs down from the cupboard.

"Call me Carlisle, Bella. And no, I'm fine. Thank you, though."

Working on preparing the tea helps me focus, gives me something to do with my hands and for that I'm grateful because it gives me time to think, which, at this point, is much needed. I take out all the different flavors of teabags I have, as well as the sugar, and set the in front of her, letting her pick what she wants as I grab a tea bag of Honey Vanilla Chamomile for myself.

Just before the kettle starts to whistle, I pull it off the fire, not wanting the shrill noise to wake Emmett or Logan, and pour the steaming liquid into mugs for Esme and myself then set her mug in front of her.

I sit on the opposite side of the table as the Cullens, wrapping my hands around the mug, the warmth of the liquid warming my hands.

We stay silent for a while longer as Esme and I wait for our tea to finish steeping.

"What's going to happen to him?" I ask quietly, breaking the silence, but looking down at the tea in my mug as if it holds the answers to all my questions.

I hear Carlisle clear his throat and sigh before he starts explaining. "We'll take him home and we'll have to set up a meeting with his agent, coach, the general manager, Emmett, and myself to decide what course of action to take. He'll most likely be sidelined, perhaps fined by the team for putting himself in danger unnecessarily. Prematurely, I'm going to assume that the conditions of his return to the team will require him to have sessions with the team's mental health doctor and to get a clean bill of health physically. But even then…" he sighs again. "The team doesn't take things like this lightly. Especially since he's the starting quarter back. He's put himself in a lot of danger, risking everything."

I nod and look to the living room where I can see just the top of his head resting against the armrest. "It'll kill him that he has to sit out," I murmur, knowing how much football means to him but also knowing that his health does have to come first, always. "If there's anything I can do, just let me know."

"Thank you, dear," Esme says. "But you should probably know…" she sounds unsure of if, and how, she should continue. "Well, Emmett might not be able to talk to you as much because you're part of his… obsession, for lack of better words. We're hoping that the meeting Carlisle was talking about will be enough of a wake-up call, but if it isn't…"

A lump forms it my throat, making it hard to swallow and I force myself to nod, blinking back tears. Because as much as I fully believe that Logan does come first, and if severing ties with Emmett is best for everyone, then so be it, I know that I've grown more attached to Emmett than I let on and ever could have thought. I realize then that I want Emmett in our lives, not just because Logan has grown attached to him, but because I have to. But then I start to think, I start to remember all my encounters with Emmett, and I realize that once he sets his mind on something, nothing will keep him from achieving that goal. And if he decides that he wants to get better for Logan and I? Then maybe, just maybe, I could have my own happily ever after, too…


	19. The Paper that Changes Everything

**Title: The Paper That Changes Everything**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you enjoy it, the formatting is a bit… different, and it's shorter, but I think that's what this chapter needed. As always, if you feel so inclined, I'd love to hear your feedback, it keeps me motivated to keep writing and brightens by days. I want to give a shout out to my beta, Bajita, without her, this story wouldn't be as good.**

**Emmett's POV**

I sit on the plane, staring blankly out the window, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. Though most of everything else I can't recall even if I tried. I can hear dad talking to me, trying to get through to me, but I'm not paying attention and I think he knows it, too, but he seems determined to try and get me to listen to what he's saying. But all I hear is the crinkle of the paper as my fist tightens around it.

**-x-x-x-x-**

I sit in the car, staring blankly out the window, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. The scenery that I usually know like that back of my hand, all seems foreign to me. There should be more trees, less buildings. I should be able to see the stars without having to squint my eyes. My ears shouldn't be blasted with the cacophony of car horns blaring. There should be silence. Peace. This place that was once my home no longer feels as welcoming. I want to shun its embrace, not run to it. I belong somewhere else.

**-x-x-x-x-**

I sit on my bed, staring blankly at the wall, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. I can hear my mom bustling around my room, sifting through my closet as she tries to find a suit for me to wear as I haven't sent anything off to the dry cleaners as of late, it's taking her a while.

I can hear dad pacing in the hallway, talking urgently on the phone, but the exact words he says aren't important to me. There are only four words that really matter.

**-x-x-x-x-**

I stand in the bathroom, staring blankly in the mirror, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. Mom finally found me a suit to wear, but I'm pretty sure it's one of my older one's so it won't fit properly. I can't bring myself to care. Without setting the paper down, I robotically put the suit on.

**-x-x-x-x-**

I sit in the car again, staring blankly out the window, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over.

I sit in the meeting, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. I'm slumped in my chair, staring blankly at the desk, as my dad, agent, coach, and the general manager work to decide my fate. I could – _I should_ be a part of this conversation, but I can't bring myself to focus because my mind keeps repeating the words over and over.

**-x-x-x-x-**

I sit in the same room, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. I'm alone now, left with my thoughts. I look around at the blue and orange. My colors. They've been my colors for as long as I can remember. Ever since I was a kid, this is what I wanted. I wanted to be here, in this building, wearing those colors and playing America's game.

I sit in the chair, clutching the small slip of paper in my fist, recalling the words with striking clarity, repeating them to myself over and over. I look down at the paper, crinkled now, but the stark black in stares back at me.

_Get better for us._

And I realize, football isn't the most important thing for me anymore.


	20. Overwhelmed with Emptiness

**Chapter Twenty – Overwhelmed with Emptiness**

**Bella's POV**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you like it! As always, if you feel so inclined to leave a review, I'd love to hear what you have to say about what's going on. I'd like to send a shout out to my Beta, Bajita, this story wouldn't be as good without her.**

It's been only hours since Carlisle and Esme woke Emmett up and got him ready to go home. I don't know when I'll see or talk to him next. I don't know if he'll ever be able to forgive me for calling his parents. And I didn't even get to say goodbye…

_Flashback…_

_I stand at the sink, rinsing out my tea mug, my back to Carlisle and Esme, who are still seated at the table. They started talking amongst themselves about waking Emmett up soon. They go quiet as I turn off the water and set the mug in the drainer to air dry, turning around to face them._

"_Bella…" Esme starts, but she looks hesitant, like she doesn't want to continue. "Bella, we think it might be best if you and Logan aren't here when we wake Emmett up. Or at least out of sight. That might make leaving… easier for him."_

_I freeze up. _

_Not be here when he wakes up? When he's so obviously hurting? I swallow painfully, but I know deep down that this is what needs to be done. So I jerkily nod my head._

"_O-of course," I murmur. Then, not knowing what else to say to them, I go to the living room, unable to look at Emmett's peacefully sleeping form as I grab a still sleeping Dufus from the armchair, and climb the stairs, heading to Logan's room, willing the tears to stay at bay._

_Trying to stay as quiet as possible, I place Dufus on Logan's bed and make my way back to my room, reaching a shaky hand out for my phone and dialing by memory. _

"_Alice," I croak, already feeling the dam about to break. "I need you."_

_End Flashback…_

"Bella," Alice's soft voice breaks me from my reverie. "Jasper just left with Logan to take him to school and I called Mrs. Pierce and let her know you wouldn't be in today." I feel the bed dip slightly and hear Alice move under the covers next to me, wrapping her arms around me, trying her best to comfort me. "What happened, Bella? I haven't seen you this upset since…" she trails off but we both know what she was about to say.

And because she's more like a sister to me than a friend, I tell her everything that's happened, every conflicting thought and emotion that's passed through my head, and at the end, there are trails of tears running down my cheeks. "I don't know what to do," I whisper a moment after I finish. I'm so confused, Ali…"

She rests her head on top of mine. "What does your heart say, sweetie?"

"My heart? Ali, its gut. What does your gut say. And I'm a horrible judge of character. Ed-_He's_," I correct myself. "A perfect example of that. I thought he was telling me the truth, that he really did care about me but all he wanted was to get in my pants." I scoff at myself, still unable to believe how naive I was.

"No, Bella. I do mean heart. You are one of the most selfless people I know. You always see the good in people and you, you just completely blow my mind because you're so strong but you never seem to see that in yourself."

I open my mouth, more than prepared to disagree with her, but she doesn't let me get a word in edgewise. "It's true, Bella. I can't tell you how many people would have given up a long time ago if they were in the same situation you were. You've given up everything to give Logan a better life, and I'm not saying that that's a bad thing, but I think it's about time you do something for yourself. Because you deserve to have your own happily ever after, Bells. You really do."

I swallow, more tears welling in my eyes at the vehemence in her voice as I'm so filled with love for this girl.

"Maybe I do," I concede. "But what if Emmett's not the right guy for me? For us? I can't have the guy I choose to be with and keep in Logan's life not be able to take care of himself. He needs to be a role model for Logan, he needs to be able to teach him how to be a good man and be there for him in ways I can't."

"While I agree that both you and Logan need a good man by your sides, you know that Emmett _is _the right guy or you never would have let him near Logan in the first place. And you know it. You're just making excuses - just like you always do when you want something but don't think you deserve it - because you're afraid to open yourself up again and take the jump."

"If Emmett is so good for us, then why is he doing this to himself? The man we need in our lives would know how to take care of himself and not put himself at risk when he knows there are people at home counting on him, loving him, waiting for him to come home."

"I've done some research on your man, Bells. Before you, he was always with a different woman, never the same one twice and they couldn't be more fake and photo shopped-"

I wince, "Ali, I don't want to hear about this," I interrupt.

"Would you just be quiet for a minute and let me finish?" she asks, and I can tell by her tone that she's starting to get upset. Ali is the most happy-go-lucky person I have ever met. But I know that from experience when she starts to get upset about something she's passionate about, it's best to stay out of her way.

I stay silent and wait for her to continue.

"Thank you," she says, then exhales deeply. "Now, where was I? Oh, yeah, the plastic tramps. Nowhere did I find any account of a woman he was serious about. Ever. The only things he took seriously were football and his family.

"I think he's overwhelmed, Bella. Overwhelmed by how you make him feel because he's never had someone he's really romantically interested in. Do you remember the first time you were in love, or thought you were in love? You would have done anything for him, no matter how ridiculous, wouldn't you have? Well I think this is the first time Emmett's in love. And no, he's not exactly dealing with it that well right now, but if you give him a chance to be the man he needs to be for you and Logan, I think you'll be surprised by how well he fits what you're looking for."

Three days.

It's been three days since I've seen or talked to Emmett.

He still calls and talks with Logan each day, but every time I ask Logan if I can talk to Emmett, Logan asks him if he wants to talk to me and each and every time he mysteriously has some other commitment and can't talk anymore. I've tried intercepting the phone so I can answer it and force Emmett to talk to me, but Logan's taken to carrying the phone with him everywhere. And every time I try and call him, the call just goes straight to voicemail, which I haven't left because what would I say, anyway? How can I explain everything on one measly voice recording? I can't.

_He hates me, _I think to myself. _That's got to be the reason he's ignoring me. He's mad that I called his parents and told them what was going on. _I close my eyes as I bite my lips, thankful Logan's playing with his trucks in the living room so I have the kitchen to myself to wallow in my misery.

Despite the fact that that might be the reason that he's ignoring me, I don't regret the decision I made. If that's really why Emmett is mad at me, then I know we aren't meant for each other.

I've debated asking Logan about Emmett, but that seems underhanded, and I don't want to use my son like that, it's just wrong.

I'm torn out of my musings when the phone rings and I realize that Logan doesn't have it with him. My gaze shoots to the phone and my heart starts beating rapidly, hoping that it's Emmett and that I can get to the phone before Logan so I can actually talk to him for a change. As I get up from my chair and hurry to the phone, disappointment fills me when I see that the number on the caller ID display isn't Emmett's.

Dejectedly, I pick up the phone.

"Hello?" I wince when I hear how sullen I sound. Whoever's on the other line doesn't deserve that. I try to fill my voice with more warmth when I say, "May I ask who's calling?"

"Hello Ms. Swan, its Angela Weber, the custody lawyer."

"Oh, yes, Ms. Weber. I want to apologize again for cancelling on such short notice. There was an… emergency I had to attend to."

"Don't apologize, Ms. Swan, I understand. I was actually just calling to ask if we could reschedule our meeting for a week from today around nine o'clock. Does that work for you?"

I nod to myself, then realize she can't see my answer. "Yes, I believe that will work. At your office in Seattle, correct?" I clarify.

"Yes, that's correct."

"Okay, that sounds perfect Ms. Weber, I'll see you then. Have a good day." She responds in turn and then we hang up. After putting the phone down, I rest my hands against the counter and lean back against it, needing the support as I exhale deeply.

"Mommy!" I hear Logan call out, his little feet and Dufus's paws racing towards the kitchen.

I look up and paste on a smile. "Yeah baby?" I say, looking down at the dorky pair, willing to do anything to keep that smile on my boy's face…

As I lay in bed, waiting for sleep to overtake me, I realize that it's been seven days since Emmett fell asleep on my couch and his parents came to get him. Each day I had been hoping that something would change, that one day he would call and he'd ask Logan if he could talk to me. And each day, I was proven wrong, my hopes becoming more and more improbable.

Even though logically I know that this is for the best, I can't help the tears roll down my cheeks because I had been hoping that by some miracle this could work out between us. Now, though, I know that I can't let myself be blinded by a man. No more. I can't, I won't, wait around for a man any longer. My focus is Logan. That's all it ever should have been.

I mentally erect walls against Emmett Cullen, forcing myself to push him out of my mind, to not care that he doesn't want to talk to me, to put him in the past and focus on the future.

I walk Alice and Logan out to her car, thanking her profusely for taking Logan to school today due to my meeting with the lawyer but she just waves me off, saying I'd do the same for her, which I most certainly would if the roles were reversed.

"Okay, baby, give mommy a kiss," I crouch down and open my arms for him while giving him my cheek, which he places a messy kiss on. I laugh as I wrap my arms around him and give him a kiss. "Mommy'll pick you up from school, okay?"

"'Kay mommy." I smile as I plant one more kiss on his cheek, then help him into his car seat. I give Ali a hug and a small smile before heading off to the porch to watch them pull out, then go back inside to finish getting ready for my meeting with Ms. Weber.

I was just finishing up brushing my teeth and slipping on my flats when I heard a knock at the door. I frowned to myself as I continued to brush my teeth, not expecting anyone but then wondering if Logan forgot something. But he or Alice would have just come in.

Shrugging, I make my way to the door and open it, my eyes going wide and I feel toothpaste ooze out of the corner of my mouth, my heart pounding in my chest as fear fills me.

"Edward."


	21. Coming Back to You

**Chapter Twenty-One – Coming Back to You**

**Emmett's POV**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Hey all, here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you like it! As always, if you feel so inclined, I love hearing what you have to say about what's going on, it really makes my day! And I'd like to make a shout out to Bajita, my Beta. Without her, these chapters wouldn't be as good.**

It's been a week and a half since I've seen or talked to my girl. I hated it, every single second of it. But I knew I had to do it. I had to prove to her that I can be the man she needs, that they need. I had to prove to my coach and dad that I could still play so that I can support Bella and Logan for the rest of their lives. And I think I needed to prove to myself that I could be the man for them, that this isn't a hoax, that they do mean something special to me because the feelings that constantly course through me when I think of Bella? I've never felt anything like them before.

And I've done it.

I've been cleared to play.

Thankfully we had a bi-week so I didn't miss a game, and the next game is two days away. In Seattle. And if everything goes according to plan, Bella and Logan will be in the stands, rooting me on.

But so far, the first step of the plan isn't going so well.

I sit in Ms. Weber's office, my knee bouncing as I look at my watch again, 8:39, a minute later than the last time I checked. Bella's always early, perpetually early, especially for something like this.

"Something's wrong," I declare, looking over at the lawyer. "I'm sorry, but I need to go. You'll be compensated immensely, once again, for the cancellation. I promise," I stand and head out of the office, striding towards my rental car and racing out of Seattle towards Forks, worst case scenarios running through my mind as I ignore all the speed limits, continuously pressing my foot harder to the gas pedal and praying I don't get pulled over.

"Come on, come on!" I urge when I'm stopped at the only stop light in Forks. Despite putting the pedal to the metal, it took longer than I wanted to get to Forks.

When I screech into Bella's drive and see what I recognize as Charlie's cruiser and Jake's truck further up the drive. Cursing, I realize that my gut feeling wasn't wrong and that something bad did actually happen.

Barely waiting to throw the car into park, I jump out of the car and sprint towards the door just as Charlie opened the door, not noticing me as he was looking over his shoulder at something in the house. As I get closer, though, my footsteps must have caught his attention because his gaze snaps to me, his eyes narrowing upon recognition and I internally curse again, realizing that Bella must have told him I wasn't talking to her this past week and a half. After promising not to hurt his daughter, I can only assume I'm not his favorite person right now. My suspicions are confirmed when he practically growls, "What the hell do you think you're-"

I ignore him and Dufus, who's barking and jumping at our feet, though and force myself past him despite his attempts at keeping me out. "Bella!" I call out, looking around wildly for her while shrugging off Charlie's attempts to grab me. I'm just about to call out for her again when I see her emerge from the kitchen wearing clothes two sizes too big for her, her eyes puffy and red, her lower lip quivering.

"Emmett?" I hear her whisper brokenly, confusion apparent in her eyes.

I'm about to go to her, wrap her in my arms when two arms wrap tightly around my waist from behind and I see Jake emerge from the kitchen, coming to stand protectively in front of Bella so he stands in between us. I growl low in my throat, not liking that they're standing in the way of me getting to my girl.

"Dad!" I hear Bella call out in surprise just before I manage to break free of Charlie's hold and advance on Jake. Moving guys out of the way is a part of the game I get paid to play, they don't stand a chance against me.

Bella gasps at, to what I assume, is Charlie falling back against the wall, but I hear him get back up and from the sound of his footsteps, he's ready for round two. Before we can start, Bella's voice cuts through the air.

"_Stop!" _she shouts.

Frozen in place, Jake, Charlie, and I look at her. "This is insane!" she declares, dropping down to pick Dufus up so he'll stop running rampant around our legs. She then stands back up and steps around Jake to face me. "What the hell are you doing here?" she demands, fierce despite being so obviously upset about something.

"You weren't at the meeting early, like you usually are. I got worried, so I drove here to see what was wrong. What happened, Bella?" I asks softly, concern showing in my eyes.

"Like you actually care?" Jake sneers. "You ignored her for a week and a half! Charlie should arrest you for trespassing." I hear Charlie move around behind me, starting to rifle around his uniform belt, presumably reaching for his cuffs to do just that when Bella's voice cuts across the room.

"No."

"Bells-" Charlie starts, about to convince her otherwise, I'm sure, but she ignore his and Jake's attempts to get her to go back into the kitchen, instead coming to stand in front of me.

"Why?" she asks simply, looking up into my eyes while Dufus squirms in her arms. I reach out a hand and cup her cheek, wincing when she flinches from my touch, but I don't' back down, moving my hand so it cups her cheek once more.

"Bella, I don't think-"

"Jake, Dad," she cuts Jake off." "Please go into the kitchen. I need to talk with Emmett. Alone." Her eyes don't leave mine as she says this as we wait to hear their footsteps leave the room and head to the kitchen.

"I didn't mean to hurt you," I start. "I needed to prove to everyone that I could do it, that I could get better and be the man you need. But I thought that if we were still talking while I was working on getting better, you would still have doubts about us, about me, thinking that I was just using our conversations as a crutch. That's why I didn't call or talk to you.

"I realize now how I went about it was stupid. I should have told you before, tried to explain, what I wanted to do, but I didn't and I am so sorry for that, Bella. So very sorry. You have to believe I didn't mean to hurt you. I swear that wasn't my intention.

"I asked Ms. Weber to see if today would work for you for the rescheduled meeting because I wanted to give myself a week and a half to get on the right track again. I was at the office for the meeting. I wanted to surprise you and show you that I was good again, that I was back on the right track. I've got a game tomorrow night, and in my mind, this would have gone over a lot smoother and you and Logan would come to the game."

Bella continues to look me in the eye for a moment or two after I finish explaining before she looks down and pulls away. My heart breaks as she walks away from me, seeing the distance she's putting between us as more than just physical space between us. She's pulling away emotionally, as well. Bella doesn't believe me.

With my heart in my throat, I close my eyes, unable to watch as she pulls away from me. I turn around, ready to leave and not bother her anymore.

"Where do you think you're going?" Bella calls out.

Confused, I turn back around, wondering if she means I can't leave until Jake and Charlie beat the ever lovin' shit out of me. Once I'm facing her directly again, I notice that she's set Dufus down on the couch and she's a couple paces away from me.

Just as I'm about to ask her what she needs, my eyes widen when she starts racing towards me, wrapping her arms around my waist when we collide.

"Wha-?" My brain can't process what's going on as she nuzzles into me, her fingers digging in to my back.

"You stupid, stupid man. Don't you ever do that again," she whispers into my suit.

That's when I realize that she's not leaving me, and I wrap my arms around her and hold on just as tight. "I won't, baby. I won't," I say, placing a kiss on the top of her head. Bending over slightly, I lift her into my arms, and she automatically wraps her legs around me as I take us to the couch, sitting down while keeping her as close as possible. "Now how about you tell me what has you so upset," I lean back slightly and tip her chin back with a finger so I can see her eyes and wipe away a tear from the corner of her eye.

She swallows audibly. "Well, Edward might have made an appearance just as I was about to leave for the meeting."

And then I see red.


	22. Impromptu Vacation Plans

**Chapter Twenty-Two – Unintended Vacation Plans**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you enjoy it! It's a bit longer because there was so much I wanted to happen but didn't want to keep splitting things up but I figure you don't mind that, right? The next chapter will be in Bella's POV just because of the way things are working out. As always, I love all your reviews, they really make my day. And I want to send a shout out to the most amazing Beta ever, Bajita.**

**Bella's POV**

I shake my head and sigh as I watch two of the most important men in my life act like complete and utter babies. You'd think that decent, hardworking men like Charlie and Jake would be able to suck it up and be polite to Emmett. But no, instead they're doing all this passive aggressive, testosterone laden bullshit. And it's not getting us anywhere.

"Dad, Jake," I plead. "Can you please stop this so we can actually work together and figure out what we're going to do? We have to make sure He doesn't hurt or contact Logan. I don't want him to have to go through that."

"And you, Bella, we need to make sure you're safe, too," Emmett says from my side, squeezing my hand while petting Dufus, who's on his lap, with the other.

I smile softly at him, then turn to look back at my Dad and Jake. "Please? For me."

Jake scowls but reluctantly nods his head. Charlie says nothing but I suppose that's better than outright refusal.

"Is there any way we can get a restraining order put out against him?" Emmett asks, looking at my dad.

Instead of being polite, though, my dad stares me down, his arms crossed as he stands in the corner of the room, removed from everyone else, clearly not pleased with the situation. Just when I think he won't answer, he finally does, but he still refuses to look at Emmett. "He hasn't overtly threatened her. So no, we can't."

Emmett curses softly to himself and my shoulders drop in disappointment.

"What did he do, Bella?" Emmett asks me suddenly, and I realize I haven't told him what, exactly, happen, just that it did happen.

My mouth goes dry remembering it and it takes me a moment before I can actually form coherent words. "I was brushing my teeth and slipping on my shoes, getting ready to go to the meeting when someone knocked on the door. When I went to go answer it, he was there.

"He didn't say anything at first, he just stared at me creepily," I shudder just remembering it, hating how he made me feel like trash with just that one look, hating that I shared part of myself with him and that I had trusted him.

Emmett squeezes my hand again, pulling me from those thoughts. I look up at him gratefully and offer a shaky smile when I get ready to continue. "I just stood there. I didn't know what to do, I couldn't move, I just…" I inhale deeply, and close my eyes. "He was only here for a couple of minutes, but just before he said that he'd find him, that he'd find Logan." I sniffle, hating that tears are forming in my eyes again. I'm so damn sick of crying. This time, Em wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me in close to his body.

"It took me a couple of minutes after he left, but I finally shut and locked the door. I called my dad but he wasn't by the phone so I left a message and called Jake and he came over, as did my dad when he got the message."

"It sounds like he wanted to scare you, let you know that he could find you. Which he obviously can. Which is why I think you should stay with someone for a couple days. Alice or your dad or Jake. Just someone. I don't like the thought of you two staying here all alone." I know Emmett's right, I just wish we didn't have to upend our lives because of Him.

"What, we can't stay with you?" I ask teasingly, trying to lighten the mood. But when I see pain flash in Em's eyes when I look up at him, I realize my mistake. He hates that he can't be here for us, that he can't protect us like I know he wants to. And I just rubbed that in his face.

"Bells, you know I live in Chicago. As much as I love the idea of you and Logan staying with me, your guys' lives are here," he says softly.

"You know," I start deliberately, the idea, which at first had seemed crazy, now seems a little more plausible as I look into Emmett's eyes. "All next week, Logan and I have off for the holiday. If you don't already have any plans, maybe we could call in sick and leave Friday and see how people live in Chicago for a bit?"

I bit my lip, liking the idea but realizing now that I'm most certainly being too forward. Just as I'm about to take it back, especially when I notice that Emmett doesn't respond right away, a slow, wide grin appears on his face.

"I," he says, leaning in close to me, "Would like nothing more." And then he kisses me. In front of my dad and Jake no less! But I can't say I'm not pleased even as an embarrassed blush flows up my neck to my cheeks. Tilting my head down to break the kiss, I find myself unable to meet my dad and Jake's eyes.

"So what? You're just going to up and leave with some jerk who didn't even think you were important enough to talk to the past week and a half?" Charlie growls, breaking the silence. My mouth drops open in shock and right when I'm about to say something, I feel Emmett shift beside me, placing disgruntled Dufus on my lap as he stands, unflinchingly meeting Charlie's gaze.

"With all due respect, sir, I don't think that's any of your business." I gulp when I see Charlie's eyes narrow and wonder if Emmett knows what he's doing. "Yeah, Bella is your daughter and I know you care for her and your grandson but she would never do something that could possibly put Logan in danger. And yeah, I did some stupid shit and I hurt Bella without intending to, but we're going to work it out," he says confidently. "I'm not going to do something stupid like that again because I care very deeply for your daughter. I don't care if you don't like me, sir, although I think it would make things easier on Bella if you did. But what I don't appreciate, and won't tolerate, is you demeaning Bella's decisions and belittling her. She's a strong, smart, independent woman who knows what she's doing."

My gaze flits back and forth between Emmett and my dad, finding it sort of unbelievable that he stood up for me like that but unsure if that was the best thing to do right now. When my dad's gaze leaves Emmett's and turns to me, I know his verdict on Emmett is about to come.

"He'll do," he says, before pushing away from the wall and walking into the kitchen.

I close my eyes and slump in my seat with relief but know I need to go talk to him daughter-to-father now. I look up at Emmett, warmth flowing throughout me when he meets my gaze. "Thank you," I whisper, taking his hand in mine and tugging until he bends down so I can place a light kiss against his lips. "Would you mind taking Dufus out for a minute?" I ask, noticing that the puppy - who's grown by leaps and bounds since the last time Emmett saw him, but still thinks he's a lap dog – no longer appeased by someone petting him has jumped down onto the ground and is dancing in place by the front door, his tell-tale sign that he needs to do his business.

"Yeah, of course," he pulls away from me and goes to the door, looking back at me as he opens the door and Dufus darts out. One more smile later, and he's closing the door behind him as he follows out after the dog.

"You know, Bells," Jake speaks up for the first time in a while, looking down at his intertwined hands. "Any man willing to tell their girlfriend's dad off is in it for the long haul."

I nod, then look out the window and see Emmett with his hands stuffed into his pockets, waiting patiently for Dufus to go to the bathroom. "Yeah, I think I am, too." I hear Jake stand and walk over to me.

"I think I'm going to head out if you're good."

"Yeah, I'm good," I assure him. "Thank you for coming over."

Jake wraps his arms around me tightly, placing a kiss on my forehead. "You don't have to thank me, Bells. I'd do anything for you. Call me before you leave?" he requests.

I nod, "Of course, I know Logan will want to say bye." I watch as he slips on his jacket and heads outside, pulling his keys out of his pocket as he goes.

Exhaling, I look around the now empty living room then make my way to the kitchen.

I find Charlie with his hands shoved in his pocket as he looks out at the backyard. Going to his side, I don't say anything at first, just link one of my arms through his and rest my head on his shoulder. We stand there in the quiet for a while, just looking out at the large pile of leaves in the back of the yard that my dad had racked together so Logan and Dufus could jump and play in them.

"He likes you," he eventually says.

"I like him, too."

We lapse into silence again.

"I ain't going to become no damn Bears fan," he says gruffly.

I smile to myself. "Of course not." Secretly, though, I think that, given enough time, Emmett will win my dad over, too.

"This is going to be the first holiday in a while we aren't together."

"We'll call you each day," I reassure him. "And maybe if you would ever go on your computer we'd be able to Skype you, too," I tease, squeezing his arm.

He grunts and I laugh, knowing we're good again.

To say that Logan was surprised to see Emmett when we went to pick him up would be an understatement. The moment he saw us leaning against the car, he was racing off into the parking lot despite reprimands from his teacher, screaming "Emmy!" as loud as his little lungs would let him.

Emmett just laughed and crouched down, opening his arms for my boy and wrapping him in a large hug when Logan ran into his arms. "Hey, Little Big Man, didya miss me?"

Logan nods frantically. "But you back!" he exclaims excitedly. "Just like you said!"

"I am back," he lifts Logan into his arms as he stands. "Now how about you give your momma some lovin', too."

I smile as Logan twists in Emmett's arms and reaches out to me, giving me an awkward hug and kiss on the cheek. "Hi, hi."

"Hi, hi, baby. How was school?" I ask, brushing back some hair from his face, realizing he needs a haircut.

"Good," he replies. "I made you picktur but teacher says we can't bring 'em home 'cause they still dryin' 'cause we useded the paints!"

"We'll just have to wait till tomorrow to see it then, won't we?" He nods. "How about we get in the car and head out now? Emmett and I have something we want to ask you."

"'Kay!" he says with a big smile, wiggling happily in Emmett's arms as Em works to get him in his car seat before we head off to Emmett's.

When we pull into the driveway of the house Emmett rented when he first visited Forks, I'm assaulted by a mirage of memories, all of them happy. I smile as I hear Logan in the backseat still chattering about his day about how Michael got in trouble with the teacher because he wouldn't share with Jamie.

Emmett helps Logan out and sets him on the ground, calling out for him to be careful as he comes to my side and takes my hand in his. "Having second thoughts?"

"Never," I assure him, leaning in to him as we follow after Logan, who's waiting anxiously for us at the door.

"So what's you got to asks me?" Logan asks once we're situated on the couch, Emmett in the corner with me pulled into his side as Logan sprawls on our laps.

"Well, baby, you know how you have a week off next week for Thanksgiving?" Logan nods. "Emmett and I were thinking that it might be nice if we left this Friday and spent that week with him in Chicago, where he lives. What do you think about that?"

Logan's eyes light up. "Really?!"

Emmett chuckles, "Yeah bud, really. And, if you're up for it, I have a game tomorrow night in Seattle that you two could come to, then we'd leave the next morning."

"Can we bring Dufus?"

I look to Emmett and he nods his head subtly, "He can't come to the game, but I don't see why he can't come to Emmett's."

"Yay!" Logan shouts, and Emmett and I laugh at his enthusiasm.

Later that night, with Logan and Dufus - whom we went back to get along with some clothes and toiletries for Logan and I – asleep in one of the guest bedrooms, I start getting ready for bed, cursing the fact that I don't have any remotely attractive pajama sets as I look down at my flannel bottoms and long sleeved thermal.

After brushing my teeth and washing my face, I emerge in my pjs to find Emmett, still in his everyday clothes – which he changed in to shortly after we got here - and waiting for me, leaning against the wall. "Hey beautiful," he says with a grin before pushing off the wall and walking forward, placing his hands on my hips as he leans down and kisses me softly before pulling back. "I made up the bedroom across from Logan's for you."

Despite my worrying about the fact that he might get in trouble for not sleeping in the hotel that the rest of the team is staying at, Emmett insisted on sleeping here. Telling me that one of his teammates, and roommate for away games, would cover for him.

"Is that where you usually sleep?" I ask, resting my hands on his forearms, not wanting to take his room and risk him having a bad night's sleep, especially he has a game tomorrow and when good sleep is something I can still tell he needs despite looking much better since the last time I saw him.

Emmett shakes his head, "I'll be just down the hall if you need me."

"Oh, okay."

"Come on, I'll walk you to your room."

As much as I liked how gentlemanly he was being with the taking me to my room and soft, barely there kisses, I only spent five minutes in the bed, staring blankly up at the ceiling before I realized that wasn't where I wanted to be.

Shucking the covers off, I left the room and made a bee-line for Emmett's. I knocked on the door, positive he wasn't asleep yet but not wanting to just walk in if he was changing. I'm knock again when he doesn't answer only for the door to be open by a bare chested Emmett. Having not dated in years, it's safe to say the number of half-naked guys who I don't consider family is severely limited.

Emmett clothed takes my breath away.

Emmett in a suit made me swoon.

Emmett half-naked?

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm about to faint.

I can't help but stare as his chest, positive it can't be real. I just want to reach out and touch…

"Bella," Emmett says, placing a hand on my shoulder and effectively snapping me out of my trance. My gaze snaps up to him and I blush furiously at being caught ogling him. "Is everything okay? Sorry I didn't hear you the first time, I was brushing my teeth."

I stare at him, it's taking my brain a bit longer to process things when all it really wants to do is continue to examine him, and then I can't remember why I came to his door in the first place.

"Babe? Everything okay with your room?" And that's when I remember why I came here.

I shake my head. "No, it's wrong. I can't stay there."

Emmett's brow furrows. "What's wro-?"

"Iwanttosleepwithyou." I rush to say, interrupting him.

Emmett blinks. "Huh?"

I close my eyes and take a couple deep breaths. "I'd like to sleep with you," I say slower this time, then realize how that sounds. "I mean, not like, together, _together_, but like, sleep next to you, in the same bed. If you don't mind," I hurry to say, positive I must not be making any sense. But when Emmett doesn't say a word and just pulls open the door, stepping back to let me in. I blink.

"So I did make sense?" I don't move even though he's made an obvious gesture that it's okay for me to come in.

Emmett laughs. "Yeah, babe, you made sense." He lets go of the door and takes my hands in his, pulling me forward into his room. "And I would love for you to sleep next to me tonight." I bite my lip and smile up at him, thankful I didn't make a complete fool of myself. "Go get under the blankets, I'll be there in a sec."

I nod and go over to the bed, picking the side I usually sleep on and hope he sleeps on the other. Climbing under the covers and laying down, I notice him by his dresser, pulling out a shirt that he's about to slip on.

"Wait," I say, a little too loudly. I duck down, pulling the covers up over my face in embarrassment and hope like hell that he didn't hear that but know the possibility is exceedingly slim.

When I feel the bed dip down, I know he's on the bed. When I feel a gentle tugging at the sheets, I know he's close to me. But I don't relent, and instead pull the covers tighter over my head, knowing there's no way he thinks I'm not crazy. I realize he's stopped pulling on the covers and I wonder if he's given up and, if so, where he's gone.

Then I hear the covers rustling and look around to try and figure out what he's doing just when his head and shoulders appear next to me under the covers.

"Why are you hiding from me?" he asks before I can scamper off and find somewhere else to hide.

"Me?" I sputter. "Hiding? No way…" I try to play it off but know he's not buying it when he raises a brow.

"Yes, you, Bella Swan, are hiding from me, Emmett Cullen, and I'd like to know why. I don't like it when you hide from me. And I'd like to know why you said 'wait' before," Emmett looks at me imploringly, no judgment in his eyes, just curiosity.

"I didn't want you to put a shirt on," I mumble, hoping its soft enough that he can't hear. But of course I'm not that lucky.

"Okay," he says simply. "But if I do, can we sleep like normal people without our heads hiding under the covers?"

_That's it? _I think to myself. _No judging or asking more questions?_ Then I realize that's exactly what I want to avoid and should question as to why he's not doing it. I nod my head when I realize I haven't answered his question and slowly pull the blankets away from my head, blowing a lock of hair away from my face.

I watch Emmett out of the corner of my eye as he gets out from under the blankets then gets situated, fluffing up his pillow and burrowing down into the mattress. "Come here," he requests, and I know he knows I've been watching him and I realize that now must be the time for questions.

Resigned, I scoot over until I'm closer to him but instead of saying anything, he pulls me into his arms and wraps himself around me. I blink, confused and still wondering why he hasn't asked any questions.

"Relax, baby. I'm not going to question you," he says softly into the silence of the room. "I'm afraid if I do, you'll over think it and pull away from me again. And I want to hold you while we sleep."

I take a minute to process his words.

"Em?"

"Mmhm."

"I'm not going to pull away again, I'm in this for the long haul." I can practically hear him dying to ask me why but I know he's holding back, his words from a moment ago replaying in my mind, so I save him the trouble. "Spending that week away from you sucked. It hurt that you weren't in my life, that I didn't get to look forward to your calls and hearing about your day. It made me realize that, if you were to come back in my life, I don't want to let you go."

"Can I tell you something?" he whispers in my ear after a moment, his hot breath tickling me. I nod. "I'm in this for the long haul, too."


	23. The Man We Need

**Chapter Twenty-Three – The Man We Need**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you like it! So I was wrong, this chapter isn't going to be a long one, but the next most definitely will as it'll span about a week. As always, I love each and every one of your reviews, they really make my day and put a smile of my face. I want to send a shout out to the best beta ever, Bajita, she's a major reason why I'm able to get these chapters out to you guys so fast.**

**Bella's POV**

Standing in line with Logan, waiting to get the tickets Emmett got for us and said would be at the ticket booth, I reflect on the day so far. Waking up in Emmett's arms was the most wonderful thing I've felt in ages and eating breakfast in bed with my baby boy and Emmett was just the icing on top of the cake. The rest of the day sucked, though, as it went by ridiculously slow. I couldn't wait till the final bell rang and I could pick Logan up so that we could come to the stadium.

"Mommy, mommy!" Logan calls out, pulling on my coat sleeve. "We next!"

"I see, baby. You excited?"

He nods enthusiastically. "Yep yep!"

When we move up in line, I see Logan standing on his tip toes, trying to see over the counter and into the booth. I pick him up, hoisting him onto my hip so he can see before telling the man my name.

"Bella Swan?" he asks, and I figure it's to confirm he heard correct.

"Yes, sir. There should be two tickets."

I watch him flip back and forth between a couple papers before looking back up at me. "Just a minute, ma'am," he says before picking up the phone and dialing a number, talking to someone.

My heart races as I wonder if something's wrong, if maybe Emmett forgot to get us tickets. "Mommy?" Logan asks, confused just as much as I am, I'm sure.

"Just a minute, baby," I say, ready to question the man as soon as he hangs up the phone.

"Ms. Swan, if you'll just wait a moment." My brow furrows at his answer.

"What's going on, sir? Are there no tickets under that name?" Before I can get an answer from him, however, I hear someone say my name from just behind me.

I turn to look at the speaker and hold onto Logan tighter when I find a very intimidating, very large man in a frighteningly tight polo and khakis standing imposingly off to the side, a bag in one hand.

"Y-yes? Is everything okay?"

"If you'll follow me, ma'am." Without waiting for an answer, he starts walking off. I look back to the man behind the counter to see if he'll give me an answer, but he's already busy helping the next person in line. I look back to the man in the polo, realizing he's continued walking away so I lengthen my stride and hurry to catch up to him.

"Can I ask what's going on?" I ask breathlessly when I finally catch up to him, not sure where, exactly, we're going, but we seem to be heading away from the crowds.

"Mr. Cullen requested that you be escorted to your seats right when you arrived and that you be given this," he says, holding out the bag to me.

Oh.

"Oh, thank you, then," I say, shifting Logan to my other hip as I take the bag from him. The rest of the walk is in silence and I mentally thank Emmett for sending someone to help us, realizing that I would have never known where to go to find our seats.

"Thank you," I say to the man when he stops at our seats, realizing I don't know his name.

"At the end of the game, I'll come to collect you per Mr. Cullen's request." And then he's gone.

Well then…

"Mommy?" Logan says as he wiggles in his seat, brimming with excitement, just before I get ready to open the bag from Logan, unsure as to what he could have left us.

"Yeah, Love?"

"We no got nuffin' to s'port Emmy," he says sadly while I look down into the bag.

"I think Emmy might be one step ahead of you, baby," I pull out a kid's size jersey that has Emmett's name and number on the back and hand it out to him. Logan bounces up and down in his seat while he pulls the jersey on. "Make sure you say thank you when we see him next time, okay?"

"Okays. You gots one, Mommy?"

I nod and pull out my own Cullen jersey, smiling as I pull it on. "And it looks like there's a couple hats, too. Are you cold enough that you want it now or do you want to wait?" I had made sure he was bundled up pretty well beforehand, knowing that it was going to get colder as the night wore on.

"Wait, please." I nod as I put them back in the bag, deciding to wait to put mine on, too, before settling back into my chair to wait for the beginning of the game.

Thankfully, we didn't have to wait long for the game to start and then we got swept away by the excitement of the game, cheering our guy on every time we saw him jog out onto the field.

I still didn't understand much about football, but from the sounds of dismay the Seattle fans were giving and the numbers on the scoreboard, I knew Emmett was kicking ass and taking names on the field. And I couldn't be prouder.

Just before the end of the game, just as promised, nameless polo man came back, but instead of escorting us out of the stadium, he took us deeper into it, leading us through several doors and hallways until we were in an open area, several other women and children talking and waiting around.

Confused, I turned to Polo Man. "Mr. Cullen requested you wait here for him when he's done." And without another word, he turns and leaves.

Shrugging, I look down at Logan and can tell he's getting tired. I know he was excited for tonight, and wanted to come, but it really took a lot out of him. "Come here, baby," I say, lifting him into my arms, and he automatically rests his head on my shoulder.

I can feel the stares of the other women, but I pay them no mind, staring at the hallway where I assume Em will come out from. And sure enough, about ten minutes later, he comes out after a couple of other players, heading straight towards us. When Logan spots him, he lifts his head from my shoulder and wiggles, wanting to leave my arms so I set him down and watch as he runs to Emmett.

I smile when I see Emmett crouch down and pull Logan into his arms, just like he did yesterday, then walk over to me, switching Logan into one arm so he can wrap the other around my waist before he places a kiss on my lips. "You played well," I say against his lips.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. And I'm glad these fit," he says, tugging on the hem of my jersey. "I like seeing you two wearing my name." I blush. "But let's head out, it was a miracle I was able to get out of doing an interview. I don't want them to catch up to me," he says with a wink.

"Do you have to go back to the hotel to get anything?"

"Nah, my dad said he'll take care of it. I'm all yours for the rest of the night."

When we make it back to Emmett's, he carries Logan in and takes him to the room to get him ready for bed while I take care of Dufus. Once done, Dufus scampers up the stairs and in to Logan's room where he jumps up onto the bed and curls up at Logan's side.

"You two read me story?" Logan asks sleepily, and I can tell it'll only take him a few minutes before he succumbs to sleep.

"Sure, baby," I say, grabbing a book off the shelf, then join Emmett on the side of the bed.

I open the book and start reading _Go, Dog. Go!, _alternating pages with Emmett until we're done. I close the book and set it off to the side on the bedside table.

"Emmy, are you my Daddy?" Logan asks out of the blue. I blink, completely surprised by his question then look over at Emmett, unsure as to how he would take it. "Because all the other mommies and daddies at the game kissed and held each other when the daddies came out. And Tyler and Jack say their mommies and daddies sleep in the same room like you do. So are you my Daddy?"

"Log-" I start, ready to run interference, especially when Emmett doesn't answer him right away, but Em places a hand on my thigh, stopping me.

"I would like very much to be your Daddy, bud," Emmett says, and something in his tone makes me take a closer look at him, and I find his eyes are suspiciously wet.

"I love you Daddy. Love you, Mommy," he says, his eyes becoming heavier and heavier.

"Love you, Little Big Man," Emmett whispers before leaning down and placing a kiss on his forehead before I do the same.

Silently, Emmett and I leave the room hand-in-hand, closing the door behind us.

We don't say a word to each other as we each get ready for bed, neither of us bothering to try and hide our tears.

When we climb into bed, we instantly seek out each other's arms.

"Thank you," I whisper, looking into his eyes.

"For what?"

"For being the man we need."


	24. Unexpected Visitors

**Chapter Twenty-Four – Unexpected Visitors **

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**AN: Here's another chapter for you guys, I hope you like it! I'm sorry it took a little longer to get out, but some Real Life stuff happened, but as promised, it is longer than usual but it still doesn't cover the entire week, just the first half of the week because it ended up way longer than I thought. Also I took some artistic liberty with the football field and how it's designed. I want to send a shout out to my beta, Bajita, she's absolutely awesome and a huge reason why I'm able to get these chapters out to you guys so fast.**

**Bella's POV**

At home the next morning, while Logan collects Dufus's bowls and toys, I look over the checklist I made for myself of things I need to make sure I took care of.

Call Logan in sick? _Check._

Call myself in sick? Check

Packed Logan's bag? Check

Packed some of Logan's books and toys for the flight? Check

Mail suspended? Check

Fridge and fruit cleaned out? Check

Garbage taken out? –

"Babe, you've double and triple checked that list. I think you've got everything," Emmett says, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I know, I know. I just like to make sure everything is ready. I usually have days to make sure everything's put to bed while we leave. I've never done something so last minute before." I set my pen down and place my hands over his, leaning back against him.

"Are you having second thoughts?" he whispers in my ear.

Without a thought, I shake my head. "No, not at all." I tilt my head back against his chest so I can see him, but at an awkward angle, as I smile to reassure him.

"Good," he leans down and places a kiss against my lips. "Everything is going to be fine, I promise. Now, since I know you've been focused on everything and everyone but yourself, how about you go get packed and I'll watch Logan. I'll probably take Dufus and Logan outside and play with them so they can get some energy out before the flight. And no buts," he says just as I open my mouth to spew out a list of things I need to take care of. "Whatever else needs doing, I'll take care of it." Emmett turns me around in his arms and kisses me softly. "Now go, I've got everything handled," he places his hands on my shoulders and steers me towards the stairs.

"You're very bossy, did you know that?" I retort, looking at him over my shoulder.

"I have to be to keep up with you," he winks before calling out to Dufus and Logan.

The flight and all the security checks pre-flight were surprisingly relatively painless, made even easier by the fact that it didn't seem to be a busy travel day so there weren't as many people around, but despite this, Emmett still wore his hat and sunglasses. Logan, having never been on an airplane before, was amazed by everything and kept pointing out the littlest details to us over and over again, but once we took off, Emmett and I couldn't help but laugh when we realized he was knocked out. Apparently the hour or so spent outside before we left the house really did him good.

When we landed in Chicago and made it back to Emmett's Dufus and Logan were off like rockets as soon as the door to his apartment opened, eager to explore and now reenergized from their naps.

Saturday night, after putting Logan and Dufus to bed, – not a hard feat when we were out and about most of the day, exploring Emmett's city and hometown – Emmett tells me to head on up to his room to get ready for bed and that he'll be up there in a minute. I lay on my back, curled up under all of the blankets that smell so very much like him as I luxuriate in the feel of the extremely soft sheets against my skin.

When he comes in with one hand behind his back, I raise a brow. "What're you up to, Mr. Cullen?" I sit up, bringing the covers with me.

"I have a confession to make," he says sheepishly as he slowly comes walks over to the bed. "I have a slight obsession with Nutella," he brings a large jar out from behind his back and holds it out in front of him.

I stare at him a moment. "I have a confession too," I say softly. "I might have the same obsession." When Emmett grins like a little boy given the best present, I can't help but grin and laugh, too. He opens the jar as he takes a knee on the bed, swiping a finger through the chocolatey goodness, holding his finger up to my lips.

"Ladies first."

I take his finger in my mouth, sucking the chocolate from the digit before swiping my tongue around it to make sure no excess is left. "Yum." When I pull away, I notice his gaze is locked on my lips.

I dip my finger in the chocolate, I offer it up to Emmett, holding it to his lips like he did for me. As he sucks on my finger, much like I did him, his gaze never leaves mine and I notice my heart skip a couple of beats more frequently than not.

Emmett's tongue flicks out at a stray bit of chocolate at the corner of his mouth when he leans back and he dips his finger back in the jar, then smears it across my lips, accidently swiping some across my cheek. I realize, though, that it wasn't an accident when that's the first place he goes to lick, especially when there's more to be had on my lips. And despite cleaning off the chocolate with just a few swipes of his tongue, he continues to lick and place a multitude of kisses on my jaw, cheek, and shoulder. I gasp when he nips at my shoulder and automatically tilt my head off to the side and move my hair, giving him more room to play.

When he pulls away, his eyes dark and his breathing rapid, like he just ran a couple of miles at fully speed, I feel a little daring and once more swipe my finger in the jar before letting my oversized pajama shirt hang off my shoulder as I spread the chocolate over my skin, feeling a zing of heat spread through me when I hear him rumble low in his throat and licks his lips almost hungrily.

"This wasn't what I meant to happen," he whispers hoarsely just before he comes back at me and licks up all the chocolate again.

"I know," I reassure him, cupping the back of his neck and threading my fingers through his hair, pulling him closer to me. "But don't stop," I gasp when his hot mouth covers my skin once more.

While one hand keeps Emmett's mouth pressed up against my skin, the other travels down his back and daringly moves under the hem of the shirt he still has on, exploring his delicious muscles. As my hand continues to move up his back, bringing his shirt with it, I have the sudden desire to see him without his shirt again, heat flushing over me as I remember the first time I saw him sans shirt.

I reluctantly pull away, tugging up on his shirt, trying to communicate that I want him to take it off and he gets the message loud and clear, quickly taking his shirt off and sending it flying across the room. I look over each and every muscle he reveals, still finding it difficult to believe that he's a living, breathing man before me and not just some figment of my imagination.

The room is silent except for the sound of our harsh breathing, as I raise a hand and run my fingertips lightly across his skin, his breath catching. I place my hands on either shoulder and gently push against them, wanting him to lay down on the bed. Emmett slowly lowers his body down, his eyes never leaving mine and I find that connection even more powerful and enticing than when we're touching skin-to-skin.

Crawling forward, I swing one leg over his stomach so I'm straddling him and I can feel his desire press against me. But instead of being embarrassed, it emboldens me and I stretch out to reach for the jar of Nutella, dipping my finger in and taking the lob of chocolate and spreading it all over his chest, deciding to be a bit daring and swipe some under his navel, as well. I lean forward so I'm almost pressed against him and slowly start to clean the chocolate off his body with long, unhurried licks and nibbles, not wanting to miss a spot.

While I lick my way across his chest, I think I hear Emmett whimper, and definitely moan in delight on several occasions, but he keeps his hands at his sides, not wanting to push me. But when I finally reach the chocolate near the promise land, he places a hand on my shoulder, whether or not to pull me closer or push me away, I don't know, but the touch and the sounds he makes reassure me that I'm making him feel good despite never having done this before.

"Bella," I hear him choke out when one finger starts to find its way to the hem of his pants. "Baby, you need to stop. We can't do this," he whispers harshly, his voice strained.

His words are just as effective as a bucket of cold water and I freeze, pulling away and climbing off of him as fast as I can. Before I can get too far, though, I feel a hand wrap around my waist, pulling me back against him. Instead of relaxing against his large, warm chest like I usually would, though, I remain stiff against him, the sting from his words still reverberating in my mind.

"I didn't mean it like that, Bella," Emmett tries to sooth, turning me around in his arms so we're looking at each other. "I only meant that if you kept touching me in that delicious way of yours, I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off of you, and we would have gone a lot farther than I think you're comfortable with right now. And I don't think I'm ready for that just yet, either," he confesses.

Despite wanting to look away and not meet his gaze, I look into his eyes and find nothing but sincerity. "Sorry, I'm just…" but Emmett shakes his head.

"I understand, Bella, I do. It's going to be a long day tomorrow, so how about we get some sleep," he suggests, resting his head atop of mine as I burrow into his chest, feeling completely safe, warm, and wanted.

"Daddy," Logan calls out, from around the corner, him and Dufus having run ahead of us to the door of Emmett's apartment after having spent our Sunday morning on a walk to go get some breakfast from a local café just a couple blocks away and then at the park where we spent a good two hours despite the early morning chill.

"What's up, bud?" Emmett asks, his arm wrapped around my waist and his forehead resting against my head as we walked, smiles on both of our faces.

"There's peoples at your door!" Logan declares.

Emmett automatically pulls away from me and rushes around the corner, unsure as to who's at the door and not wanting anything to happen to Logan; I follow quickly after him.

Not paying attention to who's at his door just yet, Emmett pulls Logan into his side after doing a quick check to make sure he's not hurt before he finally looks up at his visitors. When I finally catch up to them, I'm just as surprised to see Esme and Carlisle Cullen and an absolutely breathtaking blonde whom I've never seen before, but from the slight resemblance between her and Esme, I figure this must be Emmett's sister.

"Mom, Dad, Rose," Emmett says breathlessly with a hint of shock. "What're you doing here?"

**Emmett's POV**

"Sunday lunch, Emmett. We always have Sunday lunch unless you have a game," my mom holds up a bag of what I can only assume contains food or ingredients for said Sunday lunch and I curse myself internally for being so caught up with Bella and Logan that I forgot about talking to my parents about Sunday lunch.

"Logan, why don't we go back outside, and make sure Dufus doesn't have to go to the bathroom again, okay?" I hear Bella say and I can tell she's about two seconds away from running out of here.

"But mommy, he just went. And daddy said we could play trains. I want to play trains with daddy." I hold in a grin, but silently thank Logan for his intervention of sorts and promise to give him an extra bit of dessert after dinner tonight.

"Yeah, Logan, we'll play trains. Let's all go inside first, though, okay? I want you to meet some people." I take Bella's hand just in case she gets any crazy ideas about leaving and pull her along behind me as I go to unlock the door and we all file in.

When I give each member of my family a hug, though, I drop her hand and feel her pull away from me. I look up just in time to see her disappear through the doorway that leads to the kitchen. I'm about to go after Bella to try and comfort her when I hear Logan say, "I Logan, and Emmy my daddy and mommy my mommy. And Dufus my dog. He sweeps with me at night. Who you?" Realizing I can't just leave Logan alone with my parents and sister, I crouch down besides Logan.

"Logan, this is my family. My mom, Esme, and my dad, Carlisle," I start off, and I can practically see the wheels turning in Logan's head as he thinks things through, looking between each person I introduce and myself.

Looking up at my parents, Logan says, "My mommy's daddy and mommy are my gamma and gampa. So ifs you my daddy's mommy and daddy you my nana and pops?"

Mom looks up at me before crouching down and I can't help but grin as I watch my son worm his way into their hearts just like he did with me. "I suppose we are. So how about you come give your nana a hug?" she opens her arms for him. From the way my dad turns his head and clears his throat and my mom's suspiciously wet eyes, I know my boy has won them over.

When Logan pulls away from my mom, he goes to stand in front of my dad and holds his arms up to him, wanting to be held so he can give him a hug, too. Dad clears his throat again and leans down to pick Logan up giving him a hug back.

Logan grins, happy with himself, then wiggles when he wants to be let down. I can tell that my dad wants to hold on to him longer – mom's always said that was one of his favorite things to do with Rose and I – but he relents and sets Logan down.

"And this is my sister, Rose." She stands off to the side with her arms crossed and I can tell she's going to be the hardest sell. But when Logan exclaims, "Auntie Ro!" and races towards her to give her a hug, too, I know that even she doesn't stand a chance against him. And sure enough, soon after Logan gives her his hug, she starts to lighten up.

Rose has always been protective of me, and I know she probably thought Bella was just out to use me, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. Hell, if anything, my fame scared Bella away. Despite mom and dad having already met Bella and liking her, I can tell they still want to talk to me about Bella and Logan being in Chicago with me, especially with all that has happened in recent weeks.

"Hey bud, I'm gonna go check on mommy. Why don't you get the trains out and we'll play when I get back, okay?" Logan nods and grins before scurrying off to his room to get the trains he brought.

Heading into the kitchen, I find Bella leaning against the counter, her eyes closed and taking deep breaths. "Babe, you okay?" I place my hands on her hips and place a kiss on her forehead. She shrugs. "Hey," I say, moving to cup her face in my hands, looking into her eyes. "Whatever you're overanalyzing in that gorgeous head of yours, stop. Everything is going to be fine, Bella. I promise."

Just as Bella opens her mouth to say something, my mom and sister come in and Bella quickly closes her mouth and pulls back from me. Understanding that the surprise visit has unsettled her, but not wanting her to pull away from me emotionally, as well, I move in closer to her and wrap an arm around her waist.

"Bella, dear, why don't you help us in the kitchen while the boys do their thing?"

"Oh, I wouldn't want to impose," she shifts nervously against me.

"Nonsense you're family and we could always use an extra set of hands in the kitchen."

"I think that sounds like a great idea, mom. Bella's an amazing cook." I can feel my girl glare at me but I just continue to smile. "Logan and I'll be in the living room," I say softly to try and reassure her. "Just relax, babe, they already love you." I place a light kiss on her lips, smile, then head out to play trains with my dad and Logan.

Dinner was a hit. I don't know what happened in the kitchen, but when my mom came out of the kitchen announcing that it was time to get cleaned up for dinner, I could hear Bella and Rose laughing in the kitchen as they started to set the table and bring all the food out. After my girl sets the dish of mac 'n cheese with broccoli on the table, I grab her hand and pull her into me before she can head back into the kitchen.

Bella looks up at me with a smile on her face, her cheeks flush from all the heat from the oven and stove in the kitchen. "Hey gorgeous," I wrap my arms around her waist and she places her palms over my chest, leaning in to me.

"Hey handsome," she replies, standing on tiptoe to kiss my chin. "Are you going to keep me hostage while everyone else eats?" Bella teases.

"I'm seriously considering it. I could go without food as long as I get to hold my girl all night long."

Bella rolls her eyes at me. "As nice as that sounds, I'm starving, especially after smelling everything as it was cooking. I can't wait to get my hands on that casserole your mom made. It looks delicious."

I sigh dramatically, "Well if my girl's hungry I suppose I could let you go."

"My, my, aren't you quite the gentleman," Bella pulls away from me, shaking her head and laughing as she heads back into the kitchen to help mom and Rose fill up glasses while dad is helping Logan wash his hands, so I feed Dufus so he won't beg for our food.

Once we're all settled in at the table, it's a mad rush to fill our plates with food, but I'm perfectly content to sit back and watch my family as they share embarrassing stories about me to Bella and Logan but I can't even bring myself to care as I help Logan load his plate because this is what family is all about.

Later that night, after making plans for mom, Rose, Bella, and Logan to sit together at my game the next day and putting Logan and Dufus to bed for the night, the adults sit in the living room, mom, Rose, and Bella all having a glass of wine while my dad and I decided against a drink for the night.

"Bella, as much as we've enjoyed the afternoon with you and Logan here, I think we're all curious as to why you are here, especially given recent circumstances," Carlisle starts.

I look down at Bella, who's curled against me, to find her looking down into her wine glass. I know they're all curious, but I don't want Bella to feel like she's being pressured to tell people she rarely knows what's going on.

"Bella, you don't-"

"No, Em, it's okay. They deserve to know," Bella looks up at me with a soft smile before she explains to my family everything that has happened with Edward.

Once Bella's finished with her story, I can see the varying degrees of anger on their faces, and it pleases me that they've already come to consider Bella and Logan as one of their own despite having known them for a short period of time.

"There's no way he'll get away with this," mom declares, Rose and dad nodding their heads with their agreement.

"Have you reported what he's done to the police, Bella?" Carlisle leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his hands intertwined and I can tell he's thinking everything through again.

"No, I can't. I talked to my dad, he's the Police Chief in Forks but because he hasn't made any threats or physically tried to harm us, we can't file a police report."

"I've made contact with a lawyer, though. When Bella and Logan head back to Forks, depending on the day and if she can make an appointment, I might fly back with them to go with Bella to the meeting." I take Bella's free hand in my own and give it a reassuring squeeze.

"Let us know if there's anything we can help with," mom says. "And as much as I hate to leave, the boys should really get to bed. They have early morning meetings before the game."

**Bella's POV**

Monday morning, after we ate the breakfast I made, Logan and I wished Emmett luck as he left for his pre-game meetings, leaving Logan and I to get ready, dressing in the Bears wear he gave us, and taking Dufus out for a long walk since he would be left alone for a good part of the afternoon.

Rose and Esme came to pick us up an hour and a half before the game and we ate a quick lunch before heading out to the arena. We found our seats, Logan wanting to sit between his new Auntie and Nana, and settled in to wait for the game to start.

"Nana?" I hear Logan say.

"Yes, sweetie?" Esme runs her hand over his hair.

"Can I's have a sweep over wif you and Pops?"

"I would like that very much, Logan. And I know Pops would, too," Esme places a kiss on his head and he grins, wiggling in his seat.

I smile as I listen to him continue to woo Emmett's family, talking with them and telling them about our life in Forks. Just before the game is about to start, a couple of guys sit in the seats in front of us, blocking Logan's view of the field. Logan looks over at Rose. "Auntie Ro, I sit on your lap? I no see daddy."

"You betcha. Come here," she lifts him up and places him on her lap, wrapping her arms around him tightly and tickling lightly at his stomach, making him squeal with laughter.

"Auntie Ro! Stop it, stop it!" he shouts out in between peals of laughter. "You tickwin' me!"

"Ah, ah, ah, what's the magic word?"

"Pwease!"

Rose stops tickling him, but continues to laugh with Logan, but they quiet when the game starts, all of us at the edge of our seats as we watch Emmett out of the field.

Em's team was winning, up by twenty-one just halfway through the first, and I could tell the opposing team was getting desperate. Their hits seemed to be coming harder and even I could tell they were passing dangerous and risky plays.

And then it happened.

Everything happened in slow motions when I saw the when one of the opposing players started charging towards Emmett. My eyes widened in horror and I prayed, wished, and hoped that one of Emmett's teammates would notice, too, and protect Em, but they all seemed preoccupied with something else on the field. So I started shouting, calling out to Emmett despite the fact that he probably wouldn't ever hear me because of the raucous screams and chants from the other fans.

The player ran into Emmett, slamming him into the ground awkwardly and it felt like I could hear the impact of the other man's body against Emmett's from here. A hand came up to cover my mouth as I stood, tears already forming in my eyes.

I saw nothing else going on around me, only Emmett.

On the ground.

Not moving.

I didn't even notice I was moving, running more like it, out of the stands. I could hear people, probably security, running behind me, calling out and telling me to stop, but I ignored them and continued to run, not falling or tripping for once in my life. I catapulted myself over the short barrier that separated the stands from the field. I was still on the sidelines when the guards finally caught up to me, wrapping their arms around me from behind and holding on tight despite me kicking at their shins and trying to wiggle out of their grasp.

**AN: Thoughts? Also, I will no longer be able to update every other day, it'll probably be every two or three days but updates will still be coming. **


End file.
